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LIBRARY 


The  Glenn  Negley  Collection 
of  Utopian  Literature 


04 


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http://www.archive.org/details/mannersofancientOOclar 


M ANNERS 
M 

OF    THE 

ANCIENT    ISRAELITES: 

ooMTktnna  an  account  of  their 
PECULIAR  CUSTOMS  AND  CEREMONIES, 

THEIR 

LAWS,  POLITY,  RELIGION,  SE<  TS,  ARTS  AND  TRADES, 
DIVISIONS  OF  TIME,  WARS.  CAPTIVITIES,  «fcc. 

Y.11U    A    SHORT    ACCOl-NT    OF    THE 

ANCIENT  AND  MODERN  SAMARITANS, 

WRITTEN    ORIGINALLY    IN    F1!EN<  II    BY 

CLAUDE  FLEURY, 

ABBE  OF  AKGENTEUIL,  AND  MEMBER  OF  ROVAL  ACADEMY,  PARIS 

THF  WHOLE  MICH  ENLARGED  FROM  TI1K  PRINCIPAL  WRITERS 
ON  JKWJ8H  ANTIUMTIF>. 

BY  ADAM  CLARKE,  LL.  D.  F.  S.  A. 


FROM  THE  SECOND  LONDON  EDITION. 


NEW-YORK: 

PUBLISHED  BY  T.   MASON   AND  G.  LANE, 

For  the  Sunday  School  Union  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
at  the  Conference  Office,  200  Mulberry-street. 

/.  Collord,  Printer. 

1837, 


'A3 


P R EFAC E 

■ 

TO 
MANNERS  OF  THE  ANCIENT  ISRAELITES. 


Every  attempt  to  illustrate  the  Bible,  the 
oldest  and  most  important  book  in  the  world, 
a  book  that  has  God  tor  its  Author,  and  the 
eternal  happiness  of  the  human  race  for  its 
end,  deserves  the  most  serious  attention  of  all 
those  who  profess  the  Christian  religion. 

It  is  granted  on  all  hands  that  this  book  has 
many  difficulties  ;  but  this  is  not  peculiar  to 
the  Jewish  Scripture-*  :  all  ancient  writings 
are  full  of  them  :  and  these  difficulties  are  ge- 
nerally in  proportion  to  the  antiquity  of  such 
writings  ;  for  the  customs,  manners,  and  lan- 
guage of  mankind  are  continually  changing  ; 
and  were  it  not  for  the  help  received  from  the 
records  of  succeeding  ages,  which  are  only  ac- 
cessible to  the  learned,  many  valuable  works 
of  primitive  times  must  have  remained  in  im 
penetrable  obscurity.  Scholars  and  critics  have 
exerted  themselves  in  the  most  laudable  man- 
ner to  remove  or  elucidate  the  difficulties  oc- 
curring in  ancient  authors  ;  and  (thanks  to 
their  industry)  they  have  rendered  the  study 
of  these  writers  not  only  easy  but  delightful ; 
and  brought  the  literature  of  ancient  Greece 


4  MANN  J :  US.  or  Tlir,  ISRAELITES. 

and  Rome  within  the  reach  even  of  our  chil- 
dren. 

But  the  heathen  writers  have  not  been  the 
only  ohjecls  of  regard  in  the  grand  system  of 
critical  disquisition.  A  host  of  the  most  emi- 
nent scholars  that  ever  graced  the  republic  of 
letters,  or  ennobled  the  human  character,  have 
carefully  read,  and  diligently  studied,  the  sa- 
cred writings;  have  fell  their  beauties,  and 
prized  their  excellences  ;  and,  by  their  learned 
and  pious  works,  have  not  onl)  recommended 
them  to  mankind  at  large,  but  rendered  them 
useful  to  all  who  wish  to  read  90  as  to  under- 
stand.    Some  of  these  have  been  addressed  to 

the    ilitidi  1.   oilier-   tO    the   Scholar,  Mid    some    to 

the  plain  unlettered  Christian.     The  number 

of  the  latter,  it  is  true,  has  not  been  Lin  at ;  hut 
what  is  deficient  in  quantity,  i  supplied  by 
the   \  inTsrmation  they   impart. 

Such  works  want  only  to  be  generally  known, 
to  become  universally  esteemed. 

In  the  first  rank  of  such  writers  the  Abbt 
Fleury  and  Father  homy  stand  highly  and  de- 
servedly  distinguished;  the  former  by  histrea- 
i         entitled    Maurs   des    I  r,  (the    book 

now  before  the  reader,)  and  the  latter  by  his 
Weil    known  work    railed   Apparatus   HilAicus. 

The  former  is  i  tul  treatise  on  the 

subject  1  h;  met  m  ith. 

In  173(>  the  Mauirs  det  Israelitt  s  was  trans. 
I  by  the  Rev.  Ellis  Farnewortk,  and  dedi- 
cated to  the  bishop  of  Litchfield  and  Coventry. 
How  it  was  received  I  cannot  tell,  being  long 


XANftEKS   oy  THK   ISRAELI  .) 

before  my  time  ;  but  if  it  sold  in  proportion 
to  the  merit  of  the  work,  and  the  fidelity  of 
the  execution,  a  considerable  number  must 
soon  have  been  disposed  of.  When  I  first 
thought    of   preparing   a    I  ,tion  of  this 

work  for  the  public,  I  intended  to  retranslate 
the  original  ;  but  on  reading  over  the  trans- 
lation of  Mr.  Farneworth,  I  was  satisfied  that 
a  better  one.  on  the  whole.  Could  scarcely  be 
hoped  for.  In  general  the  language  is  simple, 
pure,  and  elegant  ;  and  both  the  spirit  and 
unction  of  the  original  are  excellently  pr< 
ed.  I  therefore  made  no  scruple  to  adopt  it, 
rving  to  myself  the  liberty  to  correct  what 
I  thought  amiss,  and  h   notes  as  I 

judged    necessary  to    the  fuller  elucidation  of 
the  work. 

\s  some  judicious  friends  though  I  the  origin- 
a!  work  rather  too  concise,  and  hinted  that 
several  useful  additions  might  be  made  to  it  on 
the  same  plan,  I  was  naturally  led  to  turn  to 
Father  Lamy  for  ma  work  al 

mentioned  I  considered  as  ranking  next  to  that 
of  the  Abbi  Hairy.  From  Mr,  Bundy's  edi- 
tion, much  of  the  fourth  part  of  the  present 
volume  is  extracted.  Those  points  which  I 
suppose  the  Abbi*  had  treated  too  concisely  to 
make  intelligible,  I  have  considered  more  at 
large  ;  and  some  subjects  of  importance,  which 
he  had  totally  omitted,  I  have  here  introduced. 
To  the  whole  I  have  added  a  copious  index, 
by  which  any  subject  discussed  in  the  work 
may  at  once  be  referred  to.     I  have  now  rea- 


6  MANNERS   OF   THE   ISRAELITES. 

son  to  hope  that  every  serious  Christian,  of 
whatever  denomination,  will  find  this  volume 
a  faithful  and  pleasant  guide  to  a  thorough  un- 
derstanding of  all  the  customs  and  manners, 
civil  and  religious,  of  that  people  to  whom  God 
originally  intrusted  the  sacred  oracles.  With- 
out a  proper  knowledge  of  these,  it  is  impossi- 
ble to  see  the  reasonableness  and  excellence 
of  that  worship,  and  those  ceremonies,  which 
God  himself  originally  established  among  the 
Israelites  ;  %nd  by  which  he  strongly  prefigured 
that  glorious  revelation  under  which  we  have 
the  happiness  to  live. 

The  late  excellent  bishop  of  Norwich,  Dr. 
Home,  recommends  this  work  in  the  following 
terms  : — "  This  little  book  contains  a  concise, 
pleasing,  and  just  account  of  the  manners, 
customs,  laws,  polity,  and  religion  of  the  Israel- 
ites. It  is  an  excellent  introduction  to  the 
reading  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  should  be 
put  into  the  hands  of  every  young  person." — 
Discourses,  vol.  i. 

This  recommendation  will  have  its  due 
weight  both  with  the  learned  and  the  pious. 


ADVERTISEMENT' 
/ 

TO    THE    SECOND    EDITION. 


The  former  edition  of  this  work  has  been 
received  by  the  British  public  with  such  flat- 
tering marks  of  approbation  as  are  highly  ho- 
nourable to  the  memory  of  its  excellent  author. 
In  no  common  case  has  the  public  opinion 
been  more  correctly  formed,  nor  more  unequi- 
vocally expressed.  The  editor,  too,  has  had 
his  share  of  the  public  approbation  ;  and  takes 
this  opportunity  of  acknowledging  his  grateful 
sense  of  the  praise  bestowed  on  his  part  of 
the  work.  Actuated  solely  by  the  desire  of 
doing  good  to  his  countrymen,  and  especially 
to  the  plain  unlettered  Christian,  he  undertook 
a  work  from  which  he  neither  expected  nor  re- 
ceived any  kind  of  emolument.  He  has,  how- 
ever, been  amply  rewarded  by  the  satisfactory 
consciousness  of  having  endeavoured  to  promote 
the  study  of  those  living  oracles  which  testify 
of  Jesus,  and  the  conviction  that  his  labour  has 
been  crowned  with  success. 

When  he  found,  from  the  rapid  sale  of  the 
first,  that  a  second  edition  would  soon  be  call- 
ed for,  believing  the  work  susceptible  of  still 
farther  improvements,  and  consequently  of 
being  more  useful  to  the  public,  he  determined 
to  spare  no  pains  to  render  it  fully  worthy  of 


8  ADVERTISEMENT. 

that  patronage  by  which  it  has  been  already 
so  highly  favoured.  Having  now  accomplish- 
ed his  design,  as  far  as  circumstances  would 
permit,  he  thinks  it  proper  to  inform  the  reader 
what  has  been  done,  in  order  to  furnish  him 
with  additional  pleasure  and  instruction. 

1.  The  translation  has  "been  collated  with 
three  copies  of  the  original :  the  first  edition, 
published  by  the  Abbe  Paris,  1681,  12mo ; 
The  Paris  edition  of  1736,  12mo,  with  addi- 
tional references  ;  and  that  in  the  Opuscules 
de  M.  UAbbe'  Fleury,  tome  i,  a  Nismes,  1780, 
5  vols.  8vo.  This  collation  has  given  rise  to 
inumerable  alterations  and  improvements  of 
the  translation. 

2.  The  references  not  only  to  the  Scriptures, 
but  also  to  the  Greek  and  Latin  writers,  have 
been  collated  with  the  authors  themselves,  and 
a  multitude  of  errors  have  been  corrected 
which  had  been  increasing  with  every  edition 
of  the  work. 

3.  To  render  these  references  more  service- 
able to  the  reader,  many  of  them  have  been 
produced  at  full  length,  accompanied  with  an 
English  translation,  where  the  matter  appear- 
ed to  be  of  considerable  importance. 

4.  A  great  variety  of  notes  have  been  added 
to  illustrate  and  confirm  what  is  advanced  in 
the  text,  and  to  make  the  meaning  more  easy 
to  be  understood. 

5.  Some  supplementary  chapters  have  been 
inserted,  viz.,  On  the  Hebrew  Poetry. — Instru- 
ments of  Music  among  the  ancient  Hebrews. — ' 


ADVERTISEMENT.  9 

Hindoo  and  Mohammedan  fasts,  purifications, 
&c,  to  illustrate  those  of  the  ancient  Jews. — 
A  short  History  of  the  ancient  and  modern  Sa- 
maritans, which  was  certainly  a  desideratum 
in  the  former  editions,  together  with  a  short 
sketch  of  the  present  state  of  the  Jews,  and  a 
copy  of  their  ancient  Liturgy. 

6.  To  the  work  a  Life  of  the  Author  is  pre* 
fixed,  which  had  not  been  done  in  the  former 
English  editions,  and  which,  though  short,  will, 
it  is  hoped,  serve  to  bring  the  reader  more  par- 
ticularly acquainted  with  the  amiable  spirit 
of  this  excellent  man. 

On  the  whole,  the  editor  hopes  the  work  will 
now  more  effectually  answer  the  purpose  for 
which  it  was  formed,  viz.,  to  render  the  study 
of  the  Bible  improving  and  delightful  ;  and 
thus,  especially  to  the  young  and  inexperienced, 
prove  an  antidote  against  deism,  irreligion,  and 
impiety  of  all  sorts.  For  he  thinks  it  would 
be  impossible  even  for  a  prejudiced  mind  to 
read  over  the  history  of  this  ancient  people, 
and  compare  their  political  and  ecclesiastical 
state  with  that  of  any  other  nation  upon  earth, 
without  being  convinced  that  they  had  sta- 
tutes and  judgments  such  as  no  other  people 
could  boast  of,  and  such  as  the  human  mind 
could  never  have  devised  for  itself:  in  short, 
that  God  was  among  them  of  a  truth,  and  that 
they  were  the  people  of  his  pasture,  and  the  sheep 
of  his  hand. 

N.  B.  The  notes  which  I  have  borrowed  from  Mr. 
Fame  worth,  I  have  marked  with  E.  F. 


SHORT  ACCOUNT 
OF   THE   LIFE    AND    WRITINGS   OF   THE 

ABBE    FLEURY. 


Those  who  have  profited  by  the  works  of 
the  learned  and  pious,  naturally  wish  to  know 
who  the  persons  were  from  whom  they  have 
received  so  much  instruction  ;  and  are  glad  to 
meet  with  any  account  of  lives  which  they 
know  must  have  been  spent,  not  only  innocent- 
ly, but  usefully.  This  disposition,  so  natural  to 
man,  has  been  deeply  studied  by  the  inspired 
writers  ;  hence  their  works  abound  with  bio- 
graphy  and  biographical  anecdotes ;  and  thus 
truth  teaches  not  only  by  precept,  but  also  by 
example,  and  hereby  seems  to  assume  a  body 
and  render  itself  palpable.  Of  the  Abbe  Floury 
I  have  been  able  to  meet  with  few  anecdotes 
which  can  be  particularly  interesting  to  the 
pious  reader,  as  most  accounts  which  have  been 
hitherto  published  of  him  relate  chiefly  to  his 
literary  history.  The  following  memoirs, 
which  I  have  collected  from  the  most  authen- 
tic sources,  are,  I  must  confess,  very  scanty, 
but  they  are  such  as  cannot  fail  to  give  some 
pleasure  to  those  who  are  admirers  of  the  im- 
mortal work  to  which  they  are  prefixed. 


MA>L\EIIS    01     THE    ISRAELITES.  11 

Claude  Fleury,  in  Latin,  Claudius  Flows, 
was  born  at  Paris,  Dec.  6,  1640.  He  was  son 
of  a  lawyer,  originally  of  the  diocess  of  Rouen, 
and  was  brought  up  to  the  bar.  In  1658,  he 
was  received  advocate  to  the  parliament  in 
Paris,  in  which  employment  he  continued  for 
nine  years,  devoting  all  his  time  to  the  study 
of  jurisprudence  and  the  belles-lettres,  in  which 
he  made  uncommon  proficiency.  This  kind  of 
life  not  entirely  suiting  his  natural  inclina- 
tion, which  was  gentle,  peaceable,  and  bene, 
volent,  he  abandoned  it,  doveted  himself  to 
the  study  of  theology,  entered  into  the  ecclesias- 
tical state,  and  soon  arrived  at  the  order  of 
priesthood. 

From  this  time  he  devoted  himself  solely  to 
thestudy  of  the  sacred  writings,  divinity,  eccle- 
siastical history,  the  canon  law,  and  the  works 
of  the  fathers.  He  confined  himself,  for  a  con- 
siderable time,  to  these  studies  alone,  from  a 
persuasion  that  they  were  most  suitable  to  his 
clerical  functions,  and  that  a  more  extensive 
range  in  the  sciences,  by  diffusing  the  atten- 
tion too  much,  must  render  the  judgment  and 
understanding  less  profound. 

His  ddep  piety  and  solid  learning  gained  him 
great  reputation  :  and  Lewis  XIV.,  who  was 
well  qualified  to  discern  great  and  useful  talents, 
and  well  knew  who  to  employ  them,  made  him 
preceptor  to  the  princes  of  Conti  in  1672, 
whom  he  caused  to  be  educated  with  the  dau- 
phin his  son.  These  princes  were,  Lewis  Ar- 
mand   and  Francis  Lewis,  son  of  Armand  de 


12  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Bourbon,  prince  of  Conti,    and   chief  of  that 
illustrious  family. 

The  fidelity  and  accuracy  with  which  this 
amiable  man  discharged  the  duties  of  his  office 
in  tliis  important  business  procured  him  another 
pupil  from  the  royal  family,  for  in  1680  the  king 
made  him  preceptor  to  the  prince  de  VermaiU 
dois,  admiral  of  France,  one  of  his  legitimated 
natural  sons  ;   but  this  prince  died  in  1G83. 

In  1684,  the  king,  highly  pleased  with  his 
fidelity  and  success  in  the  office  of  preceptor 
to  the  princes,  gave  him  the  abbey  ofLoc-lHeu, 
in  the  diocess  of  Rhodes  :  and  in  1  689  heap* 
pointed  him  subpreceptor  to  his  three  grand- 
children, Lewis,  duke  of  Burgundy;  Philip, 
duke  of  Anjou;  and  Charles,  duke  of  Berri, 
sons  of  the  dauphin*  In  this  important  em- 
ployment he  was  associated  with  that  most  ac- 
complished scholar,  and  most  amiable  of  i 
Monsieui  Fenelon,  afterward  archbishop  of 
Cambray.  Like  his  assistant,  the  Abb6  Fleu- 
ry  had  a  happy  art  of  rendering  virtue  amiable 
by  connecting  delight  with  instruction,  and  of 
making  the  precepts  of  religion  pleasant  by 
Qplifying  them  in  a  placid,  steady,  and  up- 
right conduct.  Thus  precept  and  example  went 
hand  in  hand,  and  mutually  supported  each 
other.  Never  had  pupils  greater  advantaj 
and  never  were  teachers  more  revered  by  their 
pupils.  Lewis,  duke  of  Burgundy,  became 
dauphin,  April  14,  1711,  and  died  Feb.  IS, 
1712.  Philip,  duke  of  Anjou,  became  king  of 
Spain  in  1700,  with  the  title  of  Philip  V. 


M.AMHMBM   or   nn    i~k.\i;lites.  13 

In  1696  the  French  academy  chose  him  for 
one  of  its  forty  members  :  the  highest  lite- 
rary honour  in  France — a  choice  due  to  the 
merit  of  Abbe  Fleury,  and  which  was  at  the 
time  an  honour  to  the  academy  itself. 

The  studies  of  the  three  princes  being  ended 
in  1706,  the  king,  who  knew  as  well  how  to 
reward  merit  as  to  distinguish  it.  presented  him 
with  the  priory  of  tfdre  Damr  d' ArgenteuU, 
in  the  diocess  of  Paris  :  but  this  learned  and 
Conscientious  man,  an  exact  observer  of  the 
canons,  (which  indeed  he  had  made  a  particu- 
lar object  of  study.)  gave  a  rare  example  of 
disinterestedness  in  d<  livering  up  into  the  hands 
of  the  king  the  abbey  of  /  u,  which  he 

refused  to  hold  in  conjunction  with  his  priory  ' 
an  example  which,  in  the  present  day,  we  may 
hope  in  vain  to  find,  as  sinecures  and  plurali- 
ties are  sought  after  with  an  extreme  avidity, 
everyone  seeking  his  gain  from  his  own  quar- 
ter, and  never  saying  in  his  heart,  It  is  enough. 

In  1716  the  duke  of  Orleans,  regent  of  the 
kingdom,  made  him  confessor  to  the  young 
king,  Lewis  XV,  son  to  the  duke  of  Burgundy. 
In  this  important  employment  he  continued  till 
1722,  when  his  age  and  infirmities  obliged  him 
to  give  it  up.  Had  it  not  been  well  known 
that  the  abbe  had  executed  the  office  of  pre- 
ceptor to  the  father  with  the  strictest  zeal  and 
integrity,  we  may  rest  assured  that  he  never 
would  have  been  intrusted  with  the  dearest  in- 
terests  of  the  son,  and  indeed  those  of  the  whole 
French  nation.     This  was  the  highest  eulogium 


14  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

that  could  possibly  be  given  of  the  merit  of 
this  extraordinary  man.  For  many  years  he 
had  been  in  the  very  high  road  to  preferment, 
but  his  deadness  to  the  world  induced  him  stea- 
dily to  avoid  any  farther  advancement ;  and 
being  completely  satisfied  with  his  priory,  he 
refused  to  have  any  thing  in  addition. 

Though  he  lived  in  the  midst  of  a  court 
where  pleasure  reigned,  and  rational  devotion 
to  God  was  unfashionable  ;  yet  he  steadily 
pursued  his  course,  and  lived  in  the  centre  of 
fashion  and  folly,  as  if  he  had  been  in  the 
inmost  recesses  of  a  cell,  constantly  refusing 
the  slightest  compliance  with  any  thing  that 
was  not  conformed  to  the  purest  principles  of 
the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

Having  spent  a  long  life  in  exemplary  piety, 
and  laborious  usefulness,  he  died  of  an  apo- 
plexy, July  14,  1723,  in  the  eighty-third  year 
of  his  age. 

On  his  death  several  of  the  academicians 
signalized  themselves  by  eulogiums  to  his  me- 
mory :  a  few  extracts  from  which  will  show 
in  what  estimation  he  was  held  by  that  learned 
body.  Mr.  Adam,  who  was  chosen  to  succeed 
him  in  the  academy,  speaks  of  him  in  the  follow- 
ing terms  in  his  inaugural  discourse,  delivered 
before  that  august  assembly,  Dec.  2,  1723  : — 

"Where  shall  we  find  so  many  inestimable 
qualities  united  in  one  person  ?  An  excellent 
understanding  cultivated  with  intense  labour  ; 
profound  knowledge  ;  a  heart  full  of  upright- 
ness :   not  only  innocent  in  his  manners,  but 


MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  15 

leading  a  simple,  laborious,  and  edifying  life, 
always  accompanied  with  sincere  modesty  :  an 
admirable  disinterestedness,  an  unfailing  regu- 
larity of  conduct,  and  perfect  fidelity  in  the 
performance  of  his  duty  ;  in  a  word,  an  assem. 
blage  of  all  those  talents  and  virtues  which  con- 
stitute the  scholar,  the  honest  man,  and  the 
Christian." 

In  answer  to  Mr.  Adam,  the  Abbe  de  llo- 
quelte  spoke  of  this  great  man  in  the  same  high 
strain  of  justly  merited  panegyric.  "We  shall 
always  deplore  the  loss  of  our  late  pious,  learn- 
ed, and  illustrious  associate.  Nothing  can  oh. 
literate  the  strong  impression  which  his  virtues 
have  made  on  our  minds.  Candour,  upright- 
ness, affability,  meekness,  and  strict  probity 
seemed  to  constitute  the  very  essence  of  his 
soul.  Nature  had  lavished  her  choicest  talents 
on  his  mind  ;  and  study  had  put  him  in  pos- 
session of  the  riches  of  knowledge.  In  him  a 
solid  judgment  was  combined  with  profound 
penetration.  An  exquisite  taste  in  every  de- 
partment of  literature,  with  a  vast  and  reten- 
tive memory  :  and  a  fertile  genius  with  an  in- 
fatigable  ardour  for  application.  To  these  gifts 
of  nature  let  us  add  those  which  he  received 
from  grace :  a  sincere  and  intelligent  piety ; 
an  ardent  and  insatiable  thirst  after  truth  ;  an 
unbounded  love  to  mankind,  and  the  most  scru- 
pulous fidelity  in  the  discharge  of  every  duty 
imposed  by  religion  ;  a  contempt  of  honour, 
and  detachment  from  perishing  riches,  the  love 
of  solitude  even  in  the  midst  of  the  pomps  of 


13  UtANNEBS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

a  court  ;  and  to  sum  up  the  whole,  a  pure,  ex- 
emplary, and  irreproachable  life."  Such  truly 
was  the  Abbe  Fleury,  and  such  the  serious 
reader  will  perceive  him  to  be  in  every  page 
of  the  following  inestimable  work. 

Beside  the  "  Manners  of  the  Israelites,"  and 
the  "  Manners  of  the  Primitive  Christians," 
the  Abbe  Fleury  published  many  other  works, 
the  principal  of  which  is  his  Ecclesiastical  His- 
tory, 20  vols.  12mo,  or  13  4to,  the  first  volume 
of  which  was  published  in  1691,  and  the  last 
in  1722  :  it  takes  in  the  history  of  the  Church 
from  the  birth  of  our  Lord  to  the  year  1414. 
The  author  designed  to  have  brought  it  down 
to  his  own  times,  but  was  prevented  by  his 
death,  which  took  place  the  following  year.  It 
was  long  well  received  by  the  public,  and  is 
in  general  a  truly  excellent  work,  but  it  is  now 
become  almost  obsolete,  the  public  having  de- 
cided in  favour  of  similar  works  perhaps  a 
little  more  accurate  in  some  dates  and  facts, 
but  much  less  spiritual,  and  consequently  better 
adapted  to  the  depraved,  reigning  taste  of  the 
times.  His  Historical  Catechism,  published 
first  in  1083,  12mo,  is  also  a  very  valuable 
work  :  it  has  gone  through  various  editions, 
and  has  been  translated  into  several  languages. 
All  his  smaller  works,  which  contain  aboutybr- 
ty  different  treatises,  have  been  collected  into 
5  vols.  8vo,  and  published  at  Nismes,  1780, 
under  the  title,  Opuscules  de  M.  TAbbe*  Prieur 
d'Argenteuil,  et  confesseur  du  Roi  Louis  XV. 
This  edition  was  printed  to  accompany  a  new 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  17 

edition  of  the  Ecclesiastical  History,  published 
at  the  same  place  in  25  vols.  8vo.  Great, 
pious,  and  useful  as  the  Abbe  Floury  was  in 
his  life,  his  name  would  have  long  since  been 
extinct,  had  he  left  no  writings  behind  him  : 
by  these  his  memory  has  been  embalmed,  and 
his  fame  is  become  imperishable.  Every  new 
edition  is,  so  to  speak,  a  resurrection  of  this 
learned  and  pious  man  ;  and  by  tbe  diffusion 
of  his  works  he  who  was  during  his  lifetime 
necessarily  confined  in  courts  among  the  great, 
becomes  introduced  to  every  department  of  so- 
ciety, teaching  piety  to  God  and  benevolence 
to  men  by  his  most  excellent  precepts  and  ami- 
able spirit.  It  is  to  be  lamented  that  no  ac- 
count has  been  given  to  tbe  public  of  the  reli- 
gious experience  of  this  eminent  man,  nor  of 
his  last  moments.  As  his  life  was  holy  and 
useful,  his  end  must  have  been  peace  :  thus 
far  we  may  safely  conjecture. 

The  testimonies  of  his  contemporaries  speak 
much  for  him  ;  and  his  unspotted  life  confirms 
all  that  his  warmest  friends  have  said  of  his 
sincere  and  unaffected  piety.  [lis  religion  was 
such  as  to  emit  a  steady  and  brillant  light  in 
the  midst  of  a  court  which  at  that  time  had  at- 
tained the  acme  of  worldly  glory.  Yet  even 
there  the  man  of  God  was  distinguished,  and 
all  were  obliged  to  own  that  the  glory  of  that 
kingdom  which  is  not  of  this  world  infinitely 
exceeds  all  the  splendours  which  can  possibly 
adorn  the  most  illustrious  kingdoms  of  the  uni- 
verse.    Reader,  give  God  the  glory  due  to  his 


18  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

name  for  the  light  which  in  his  eternal  mercy 
he  has  caused  to  shine  in  a  dark  place,  as  a 
testimony  to  his  power  and  goodness  :  and  let 
this  example  encourage  thee  to  confess  thy 
Lord  amid  a  crooked  and  perverse  generation, 
among  whom,  if  thou  he  not  wanting  to  thy- 
self, thou  mayest  shine  as  a  light  in  the  world. 
Manchester,  December  12,  1804. 


Lot  us  pray,  while  solvation  to  us  is  declared, 

For  faith  to  be  mixed  with  the  word: 
That  falling'  on  ground,  by  devotion  prepared, 

It  may  not  he  unfruitful  when  head. 
And  O,  that  a  dew  from  the  Lord  may  descend, 

To  Best  in  abundance  on  all ; 
For  without  it  no  blessings  the  Gospel  attend, 

Though  preached  by  Apolle^  or  Paul. 


MANNERS  OF   THE   ISRAELITES. 


PART  I. 


CHAPTER  I. 
The  Design  of  this  Treatise. 

The  people  whom  God  chose  to  preserve 
the  true  religion  till  the  promulgation  of  the 
gospel,  are  an  excellent  model  of  that  way  of 
living,  which  is  most  conformable  to  nature. 
We  see  in  their  customs  the  most  rational  me- 
thod of  subsisting,  employing  one's  self,  and 
living  in  society  ;  and  from  thence  may  learn, 
not  only  lessons  of  morality,  but  rules  for  our 
conduct  both  in  public  and  private  life. 

Vet  these  customs  are  so  different  from  our 
own,  that  at  first  sight  they  offend  us.  We 
do  not  see  among  the  Israelites  those  titles  of 
nobility,  that  multitude  of  employments,  or  di- 
versity of  conditions,  which  are  to  be  found 
among  us.  They  are  only  husbandmen  and 
and  shepherds,  all  working  with  their  own 
hands,  all  married,  and  looking  upon  a  great 
number  of  children  as  the  must  valuable  bless- 
ing. The  distinction  of  meats,  of  clean  and 
unclean  animals,  with  their  frequent  purifica- 
tions, seem  to  us  as  so  many  troublesome  cere- 
monies :  and  their  bloody  sacrifices  quite  dis- 
gust  us.     We   observe,  moreover,  that  these 


20  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

people  were  prone  to  idolatry,  and,  for  that  ' 
reason,  are  often  reproached  in  Scripture  for 
their  perverscness  and  hardness  of  heart  ;  and, 
by  the  fathers  of  the  church,  for  being  stupid 
and  carnally  minded.  All  this,  joined  to  a 
general  prejudice,  that  what  is  most  ancient 
is  always  most  imperfect,  easily  influences  us 
to  believe  that  these  men  were  brutish  and  io-no- 
rant,  and  their  customs  more  worthy  of  con- 
tempt than  admiration.* 

And  this  is  one  reason  why  the  Holy  Script- 
ures, especially  those  of  the  Old  Testament, 
are  so  much  neglected,  or  read  to  so  little  pur- 
pose. Several  well-meaning  people,  who  have 
not  quite  got  over  such  prejudices  are  discou- 
raged by  the  outward  appearance  of  these 
strange  customs  ;  and  either  impute  the  whole, 
without  distinction,  to  the  imperfection  of  the 
old  law  ;  or  imagine  that  some  mysteries  be- 
yond their  comprehension  are  concealed  under 
these  external  appearances.  Others,  for  want 
of  faith,  or  uprightness  of  heart,  are  tempted, 
upon  such  pretences,  to  despise  the  Scripture 

*  It  would  not  be  difficult  to  prove  that  the  major 
part,  if  not  the  whole  of  the  animals,  the  eating  of 
ish  was  forbidden  under  the  Mosaic  law,  are 
unfit  for  the  purposes  of  nutrition.  Blood,  which  is  so 
of  en  and  so  solemnly  forbidden,  affords  a  most  gross 
and  innutriiivc  aliment.  The  laws  relative  to  lepers 
and  other  infected  persons,  and  those  which  forbade 
contract  witli  dead  or  putrid  carcasses,  were  wisely 
ordered  to  prevent  the  reception  and  diifusion  of  con- 
tagion. Their  frequent  \vashings,and  bathings  also, 
had  the  most  direct  tendency  to  promote  health  and 
ensure  a  long  and  comfortable  life. 


MAJNTNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  21 

itself,  as  full  of  mean  and  trivial  matters ;  or 
draw  wrong  conclusions  from  it  to  countenance 
their  own  vices. 

But,  upon  comparing  the  manners  of  the 
Israelites  with  those  of  the  Romans,  Greeks, 
Egyptians,  and  other  people  of  former  ages, 
which  we  hold  in  the  highest  veneration  these 
prejudices  soon  vanish.  We  observe  a  noble 
simplicity  in  them,  greatly  preferable  to  all  re- 
nnements  ;  that  the  Israelites  had  every  thing 
that  was  valuable  in  the  customs  of  their  con- 
temporaries, without  many  of  their  defects,  and 
a  great  advantage  over  them  in  understanding 
(what  ought  to  be  our  chief  aim  in  this  life)  the 
nature  of  that  true  religion,  which  is  the 
foundation  of  morality. 

We  must  learn  then  to  distinguish  what  is 
only  offensive  to  us  in  their  customs  from 
what  is  really  blameworthy  ;  what  we  do  not 
like  upon  account  of  the  distance  of  times  and 
places,  though  it  be  in  itself  indifferent,  from 
that  which,  being  good  in  itself,  displeases  us 
for  no  other  reason  than  because  we  are  cor- 
rupt in  our  manners.  For,  most  of  the  differ- 
ence betwixt  us  and  them  does  not  proceed 
from  our  being  more  enlightened  by  Chris- 
tianity, but  from  our  being  less  guided  by  reason. 
The  Christian  religion  did  not  introduce  this 
great  inequality  of  conditions,  this  disdain  of 
labour,  this  eagerness  for  diversions,  this  au- 
thority of  women  and  young  people,  this  aver- 
sion from  a  simple  and  frugal  life,  which  make 
us  differ  so  much  from  the  ancients.      It  would 


ZZ  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

have  been  much  easier  to  have  made  good 
Christians  of  those  shepherds  and  ploughmen, 
which  we  see  in  their  history,  than  of  our 
courtiers,  lawyers,  or  farmers  of  the  revenue, 
and  many  others  that  spent  their  lives  in  an 
idle  and  discontented  poverty. 

Let  it  be  observed  that  I  do  not  pretend  to 
make  a  panegyric  upon  this  people ;  but  to 
give  a  very  plain  account,  like  that  of  travel- 
lers who  have  seen  far  distant  countries :  I 
shall  describe  what  is  good,  bad,  or  indifferent, 
just  as  it  is,  and  only  desire  the  reader  to  di- 
vest himself  of  all  prejudice,  that  he  may  judge 
of  these  customs  by  good  sense  and  right  rea- 
son alone  ;  to  discard  the  ideas  that  are  pe- 
culiar to  his  own  age  and  country,  and  con- 
sider the  Israelites  in  the  circumstances  of 
time  and  place  wherein  they  lived  ;  to  com- 
pare them  with  their  nearest  neighbours,  and 
by  that  means  to  enter  into  their  spirit  and 
maxims.  We  must  indeed  be  entire  strangers 
to  historv  not  to  see  the  great  difference  which 
distance  of  time  and  place  occasions  in  people's 
manners.  We  inhabit  the  same  country  which 
the  ancient  Britons,  and  afterward  the  Romans, 
dwelt  in  :  and  yet  how  much  do  we  vary  from 
both  in  their  way  of  living  ;  nay,  even  from 
that  of  our  own  countrymen  who  lived  seven 
or  eight  hundred  years  ago.*     And  at  present 

*  Who  would  imagine  that  the  present  inhabitants 
of  Great  Britain,  who  spend  so  much  time  and  money 
in  unmeaning,  useless,  and  ridiculous  modes  of  dress, 
are  the  descendants  of  a  race  of  people  who,  in  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  23 

what  likeness  is  there  between  our  customs 
and  those  of  the  Turks,  Indians,  and  Chinese? 
If,  then,  we  consider  these  two  sorts  of  distance 
together,  we  shall  be  so  far  from  being  asto- 
nished that  they  who  lived  in  Palestine  three 
thousand  years  ago  had  customs  different  from 
ours,  that  we  shall  rather  wonder  if  we  find 
any  think  in  them  alike. 

We  must  not  imagine,  however,  that  these 
changes  are  regular,  and  always  come  on  in 
the  same  space  of  time.  Countries  that  are 
very  near  each  other  often  differ  widely  in  their 
religion  and  politics,  as,  at  this  day,  Spain  and 
Africa,  which,  under  the  Roman  empire,  had 
the  same  customs.  On  the  contrary,  there  is 
now  a  great  resemblance  between  those  oi 
Spain  and  Germany,  though  there  was  then 
none.  The  same  holds  good  in  respect  to  the 
difference  of  times.  They  that  are  not  ac- 
quainted with  history,  having  heard  it  said  that 
the  people  of  former  ages  were  more  simple  than 
wp,  suppose  the  world  is  always  growing  more 
polite ;  and  that  the  farther  any  one  looks  back 
into  antiquity,  the  more  stupid  and  ignorant  he 
will  find  mankind  to  have  been. 

But  it  is  not  really  so  in  countries  that  have 
been  inhabited  successively  by  different  people : 
the  revolutions  that  have  happened  there  have 

very  same  climate  and  land,  went  almost  naked,  not 
only  during  the  scorching  heats  of  summer,  but  also 
through  the  chitting  blasts  of  winter;  and  yet  were 
more  healthy,  vigorous,  and  robust  than  their  present 
degenerate  offspring 


24  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

always,  from  time  to  time,  introduced  misery 
and  ignorance,  after  prosperity  and  good  man- 
ners. So,  Italy  is  now  in  a  much  better  con. 
dition  than  it  was  eight  hundred  years  ago. 
But  eight  hundred  years  before  that,  under  the 
first  Cesars,  it  was  happier  and  in  a  more 
prosperous  state  than  it  is  at  present.  It  is 
true,  if  we  go  back  eight  hundred  years  more, 
near  the  time  that  Rome  was  founded,  the 
same  Italy  will  appear  much  poorer  and  less 
polished,  though  at  that  time  very  populous  : 
and  still  the  higher  we  ascend,  it  will  seem 
more  wretched  and  uncultivated.  Nations 
have  their  periods  of  duration,  like  particular 
men.  The  most  nourishing  state  of  the  Greeks 
was  under  Alexander ;  of  the  Romans,  under 
Augustus  ;  and  of  the  Israelites,  under  Solomon* 
We  ought  therefore  to  distinguish,  in  every 
people,  their  beginning,  their  greatest  prosperity, 
and  their  declension.  In  this  manner  I  shall  con- 
sider the  Israelites,  during  all  that  space  of 
time  that  they  were  a  people,  from  the  calling 
of  Abraham  to  the  last  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem. It  contains  more  than  two  thousand 
years,  which  I  shall  divide  into  three  periods, 
according  to  the  three  different  states  of  this 
people.  The  first,  of  the  patriarchs  ;  the  se- 
cond, of  the  Israelites,  from  their  going  out  of 
Egypt  to  the  Babylonish  captivity  ;  and  the 
third,  of  the  Jews,  after  they  returned  from 
captivity,  to  the  promulgation  of  the  gospel. 


MAKNEJtS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  25 

CHAPTER  II. 

Of  the  Patriarchs*— Their  Nubility. 

The  patriarchs  lived  after  a  noble  manner, 
in  perfect  freedom  and  great  plenty,  notwith- 
standing their  way  of  living  was  plain  and  la- 
borious. Abraham  knew  the  whole  succession 
of  his  ancestors,  and  no  way  lessened  his  nobi- 
lity, since  he  married  into  liis-own  family.  He 
took  care  to  provide  a  wife  of  the  same  race 
for  his  son,  in  whom  were  fulfilled  all  the  pro- 
mises that  God  had  made  to  him  :  and  Isaac 
taught  Jacob  to  observe  the  same  law. 

The  long  lives  of  the  fathers  gave  them  an 
opportunity  of  educating  their  children  well, 
and  of  making  them  serious  and  considerate 
betimes.  Abraham  lived  more  than  a  hundred 
years  with  Shem,  and  no  doubt  learned  from 

*  Patriarch,  from  the  Trarpiapx^g,  which  literally  sig- 
nifies the  chief  or  head  of  a  family.  The  term  is  ap- 
plied properly  to  the  progenitors  of  the  Jewish  people, 
and  especially  to  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  and  the 
twelve  sons  of  the  latter.  The  patriarchal  govern- 
ment existed  in  the  fathers  of  families  and  their  first- 
born sons  after  them,  and  included  the  regal  and 
sacerdotal  authority  ;  and  not  unfrequenly  the  pro- 
phetic. This  authority,  which  every  first-born  son 
exercised  over  all  the  widely  extended  branches  of  a 
numerous  family,  is  termed  in  Scripture  the  birth- 
right. The  patriarchal  dispensation  includes  all  the 
time  from  the  creation  of  the  world,  till  the  giving  of 
the  Law.  The  patriarchs  are  divided  into  classes,  the 
antediluvian  and  postdiluvian:  to  the  former  belong 
Adam,  Seth,  Enoch,  &c.  To  the  latter,  Abram,  Isaac, 
Jacob,  &c. 


26  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES 

him  the  state  of  the  world  before  the  deluge. 
He  never  left  his  father  Terah,  and  was  at 
least  seventy  years  old  when  he  lost  him.  Isaac 
was  seventy-five  when  Abraham  died,  and,  as 
far  as  we  know,  never  went  from  him  all  that 
time.*  It  is  the  same  with  respect  to  the  other 
patriarchs.  Living  so  long  with  their  fathers, 
they  had  the  benefit  of  their  experience  and 
inventions.  They  prosecuted  their  designs, 
adhered  firmly  to  their  maxims,  and  became 
constant  and  uniform  in  their  conduct.  For 
it  was  a  difficult  matter  to  change  what  had 
been  settled  by  men  who  were  still  alive  ;  espe- 
cially as  the  old  men  kept  up  their  authority, 
not  only  over  the  youth,  but  also  the  elders 
that  were  not  so  old  as  themselves. 

The  remembrance  of  things  past  might  be 
easily  preserved  by  the  bare  relation  of  old 
men,  who  naturally  love  to  tell  stories  of  ancient 
times,  and  had  so  much  leisure  for  it.  By  this 
means  they  had  no  great  use  for  writing ;  and 
it  is  certain  we  find  no  mention  'of  it  before 
Moses.  However  difficult  it  may  seem  to  con- 
ceive that  so  many  calculations  as  he  recites 
should  have  been  preserved  in  the  memory  of 
men,  as  the  age  of  all  the  patriarchs.  Gen.  v, 
the  exact  dates  of  the  beginning  and  end  of 

*  The  author  follows  here  the  chronology  of  Arch- 
bishop Usher,  who  supposes  that  Shem  did  not  die  till 
150  years  alter  the  birth  of  Abraham.  But  Usher 
leaves  the  second  Cainan  out  of  his  chronology,  whom 
the  Septuagint  and  St.  Luke  place  between  Arphaxad 
and  Salah.  This  second  Cainan  throws  the  birth  of 
Abraham  much  farther  back. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  27 

the  flood,  Gen.  vii,  11  ;  viii,  13,  the  dimensions 
of  the  ark,  Gen.  vi,  15,  &c,  yet  there  is  no 
necessity  for  recurring  to  miracle  and  revela- 
tion. For  it  is  probable  that  writing  was  found 
out  before  the  deluge  :  as  we  are  sure  musical 
instruments  were,  though  not  so  necessary. 
Gen.  iv,  21.  But  though  Moses  might  have 
learned  in  the  common  way  most  of  the  facts 
which  he  has  written,  I  believe,  nevertheless, 
that  lie  was  influenced  by  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
record  these  facts,  rather  than  others,  and  ex- 
press them  in  terms  most  proper  for  the  pur- 
pose. 

Besides,  the  patriarchs  took  care  to  preserve 
the  memory  of  considerable  events  by  setting 
up  altars  and  pillars,  and  other  lasting  monu- 
ments. Thus,  Abraham  erected  altars  in  the 
different  places  where  God  had  appeared  to 
him,  Gen.  xii,  8  ;  xiii,  18.  Jacob  consecrated  the 
stone  which  served  him  for  a  pillow  while  he 
had  the  mysterious  dream  of  the  ladder,  Gen. 
xxviii,  18  ;  and  the  heap  of  stones  which  was 
witness  to  his  covenant  with  Laban  he  called 
Galeed,  Gen.  xxxi,  48.  Of  this  kind  was  the 
sepulchre  of  Rachel  ;  the  well  called  Beersheba, 
Gen.  xxvi,  33  ;  and  all  the  other  wells  men- 
tioned in  the  history  of  Isaac.  Sometimes  they 
gave  new  names  to  places.  The  Greeks  and 
Romans  relate  the  same  of  their  heroes,  the 
eldest  of  whom  lived  near  the  times  of  the  pa- 
triarchs, Pausan.  passim;  Dion.  Hal.,  lib.  i. 
Greece  was  full  of  their  monuments  :  ^Eneas, 
to  mention  no  others,  left  some  in  every  place 


28  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

that  he  passed  through  in  Greece,  Sicily,  and 
Italy.     (Virgil.  JEn.,  passim.) 

The  very  names  of  the  patriarchs  were,  be- 
sides,  a  sort  of  more  simple  and  familiar  monu- 
ments. They  signified  some  remarkable  cir- 
cumstance of  their  birth,  or  particular  favour 
received  from  God.  So  they  were  in  effect  a 
short  history.*  For  they  took  care  to  explain 
the  reason  of  these  names  to  their  children,  and 
it  was  hardly  possible  to  pronounce  them  with- 
out refreshing  the  memory  with  it.  This  care 
for  posterity,  and  providence  for  the  future, 
was  an  argument  of  true  generosity  and  great- 
ness of  mind. 

*  Such,  for  instance,  as  Abram,  from  ^x  ah,  n  father, 
and  Qi  ram,  high;  called  afterward  Abraham, 
Drn2N  a  hither  of  multitudes  ;  the  n  being  inserted 
before   q;     for    en   hain,    is  a  contraction    of   pon 

hamon,  a  muUitueU . 

Peleo,  Hum  j^ij  palag,  he  (lidded:  for  in  his 
days,  says  the  text,  Gen.  X,  25,  the  earth  {r\^l^ 
aipilegah)  was  divided. 

Ma-  the  son  of  Joseph,  signifies  forgeti 

from  ni0J  nashah,  he  was  forgetful,  for,  said  he,  Gen. 
xli,  51,  God  hath  made  me  forget  ('JBJJ  nashshani)  all 
my  labour',  and  my  father's  house. 

Erim.uM.  fruitful,  fromniD  pharah,  he  icas  fruit- 
ful ;  for,  said  Joseph  his  father,  "'Jtsn  Hiphrani, 
God  hath  made  me  fruitful  in  the  land  of  my  affliction, 
Gen.  xli,  52. 

Joseph,  ,-,'dition  or  increase,  from  sp-  Yasaph,  he 

added  or  i 'a /rased;  because,  said  his  mother,  niPT 
rpv  Yoseph  Jehovah,  Vic  Lord  shall  add  to  me  another 
son,  Gen.  xxx,  25. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  29 

The  patriarchs  enjoyed  perfect  freedom,  and 
their  family  was  a  little  state,  of  which  the 
father  was,  in  manner,  king.  For  what  did 
Ahraham  want  of  the  power  of  sovereigns,  but 
their  vain  titles  and  inconvenient  ceremonies  ? 
He  was  subject  to  nobody ;  kings  concluded 
alliances  with  him  :  he  made  war  and  peace 
when  he  pleased.  Princes  sought  the  alliance 
of  Isaac.  Gen.  xxvi,  26,  28.  Ishmael,  Jacob, 
and  Esau,  were  likewise  independent.  We 
must  not  then  suffer  ourselves  to  be  misled  by 
names,  nor  think  Abraham  inferior  to  Amraphel 
or  Abimelech,  because  the  Scripture  does  not 
call  him  king  as  well  as  them.  He  was  cer- 
tainly equal  to  one  of  those  four  kings  whom 
he  defeated  with  his  domestic  forces,  and  the 
assistance  of  his  three  allies.  Gen.  xiv,  14,  1 5. 
The  greatest  difference  was,  that  be  did  not 
shut  himself  up  within  walls  as  they  did,  and 
that  his  whole  family  followed  him  to  any  place 
whither  he  had  a  mind  to  move  his  tents.  All 
authentic  history  testifies  that  kingdoms  were 
very  small,  even  in  the  east,  at  that  time  of 
day  and  we  find  them  so  in  other  countries  a 
great  while  after. 


CHAPTER  III. 
Their  Riches  and  Employments. 

The    riches    of    the    patriarchs    consisted 
chiefly  in  cattle.     Abraham   must   have  had 


30  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

a  vast  stock  when  he  was  obliged  to  part  from 
his  nephew  Lot,  becEiuse  the  land  was  not  able 
to  bear  them  together.  Gen.  xiii,  6.  Jacob 
had  a  great  number  when  he  came  back  from 
Mesopotamia  ;  since  the  present  that  he  made 
to  his  brother  Esau  was  fire  hundred  and 
eighty  head  of  different  sorts.  Gen.  xxxii, 
13,  15.  From  which  we  may  likewise  learn 
what  sort  of  beasts  they  bred,  viz.  :  goats, 
sheep,  camels,  horned  cattle,  and  asses. 

There  were  no  horses  nor  swine  among 
them.  It  was  such  plenty  of  cattle  which 
made  them  set  so  great  a  value  upon  wells  and 
cisterns,  in  a  country  where  there  was  no 
river  but  Jordan,  and  rain  very  seldom. 

They  had  slaves  too  :  and  Abraham  must 
have  had  abundance  of  them,  since  he  armed 
three  hundred  and  eighteen  men  of  those  that 
were  born  in  his  house  and  trained  up  by 
himself.  Gen.  xiv,  14.  In  proportion,  he  must 
have  had  plenty  of  children,  old  men,  women, 
and  slaves  that  were  bought  with  money. 
When  he  returned  from  Egypt,  it  is  said  he 
was  rich  in  gold  and  silver.  Gen.  xiii,  2.  The 
bracelets  and  earrings,  which  his  servant 
Eliezer  made  a  present  of  to  Rebecca  from  his 
master,  weighed  six  ounces  of  gold,  Gen.  xxiv, 
22  ;  and  the  purchase  of  his  burying  place 
shows  that  mone}r  was  in  use  at  that  time. 
Gen.  xxiii,  1G.  We  see  likewise  that  perfumes 
and   costly  raiment   were    made  use   of*    by 

*  Gen.  xxvii,  27.   But  does  not  this  rather  intimate 
that  odoriferous  plants  or  herbs,  were  laid  up  with  the 


MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES.  31 

Esau's  clothes,  which  Jacob  wore  to  obtain  his 
father's  blessing. 

With  all  their  riches  they  were  very  labori- 
ous, always  in  the  field,  lying  under  tents, 
shifting  their  abode  according  to  the  conve- 
nience of  pasture,  and  consequently  often  taken 
up  with  encamping  and  decamping,  and  fre- 
quently upon  the  march  :  for  they  could  make 
but  short  days'  journeys  with  so  numerous  an 
attendance.  Not  but  that  they  might  have 
built  towns  as  well  as  their  countrymen  ;  but 
they  chose  this  way  of  living.  It  is  without 
doubt  the  most  ancient,  since  it  is  easier  to  set 
up  tents  than  to  build  houses  ;  and  has  always 
been  reckoned  the  most  perfect,  as  attaching 
men  less  to  this  world.  Thus  the  condition  of 
the  patriarchs  is  best  represented,  who  lived 
here  only  as  sojourners  waiting  for  the  pro- 
mises of  God,  Ileb.  xi,  9,  13,  which  were  not 
to  be  accomplished  till  after  their  death.  The 
first  cities  that  arc  mentioned  were  built  by 
wicked  men.  Gen.  iv,  17.  Cain  and  Nimrod 
were  the  first  that  erected  walls  and  fortifications 
to  secure  themselves  from  the  punishment  due 
to  their  crimes,  and  to  give  them  an  opportu- 
nity of  committing  fresh  ones  with  impunity. 
Gen.  x,  10.  Good  men  lived  in  the  open  air, 
having  nothing  to  make  them  afraid. 

The  chief  employment  of  the  patriarchs  was 
the  care  of  their  cattle  :  their  whole  history 

clothes  in  the  chests  or  coffers  where  they  were  kept  1 
A  custom  that  prevails  among  the  inhabitants  of  some 
countries  to  the  present  day. 


32  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

shows  it,  and  the  plain  account  which  the  sons 
of  Jacob  gave  of  themselves  to  the  king  of 
Egypt.  Gen.  xlvii,  3.  Though  husbandry  be 
very  ancient,  the  pastoral  life  is  the  most  per- 
feet.  The  first  was  the  lot  of  Cain,  the 
brother  of  Abel.  Gen.  iv,  2.  It  has  something 
in  it  more  simple  and  noble ;  it  is  laborious, 
attaches  one  loss  to  the  world  and  yet  more 
profitable.  The  elder  Cato  (De  Re  Rustic,  in 
init.)  preferred  a  stock  of  cattle,  though  but  a 
moderate  one,  to  tillage,  which  yet  he  thought 
better  than  any  other  way  of  improving  his 
fortune. 

The  just  reprimand  which  Jacob  gave  to 
Laban,  shows  that  the  patriarchs  laboured  hard 
at  their  work,  and  did  at  no  time  neglect  it  : 
1  hare  served  liter,  twenty  years,  says  he  ;  in  the 
day  the  drought  consumed  me,  and  the  frost 
by  night,  and  my  sleep  departed  from  mine  eyes. 
.  w\i.  40.  One  may  judge  of  the  men's 
laborious  way  of  living  by  that  of  the  young 
women.  Rebecca  came  a  good  way  oft'  to 
draw  water,  and  carried  it  upon  her  shoulders, 
Gen.  xxiv,  15  ;  and  Rachel  herself  kept  her 
father's  flock*  Gen.  xxix,  9.  Neither  their  no- 
bility nor  beauty  made  them  so  delicate  as  to 
scruple  it.  This  primeval  simplicity  was  long 
retained  among  the  Greeks,  whose  good  breed- 
ing we  yet  admire  with  so  much  reason. 
Homer  affords  us  examples  of  it  throughout  his 
works,  and  pastorals  have  no  other  foundation. 
It  is  certain  that  in  Syria,  Greece,  and  Sicily, 
there  were  persons  of  eminence  who  made  it 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  33 

their  sole  occupation  to  breed  cattle  for  more 
than  one  thousand  Jfoe  hundred  years  after  the 
patriarchs  ;  and  who,  in  the  great  leisure  that 
sort  of  life  afforded,  and  the  good  humour  those 
delightful  countries  inspired  them  with,  corn- 
posed  several  little  pieces  of  poetry,  still  extant, 
of  inimitable  beauty  and  simplicity. 


CHAPTER  IV 

Their  Frugality 

The  patriarchs  were  not  at  all  nice  in  their 
eating  or  other  necessaries  of  life  ;  one  may 
judge  of  their  common  food  by  the  pottage  of 
lentilcs  that  Jacob  had  prepared,  which 
tempted  Esau  to  sell  his  birthright.  Gen.  xxv, 
29,  34.  But  we  have  an  instance  of  a  splen- 
did entertainment  in  that  which  Abraham  made 
for  the  three  angels.  Gen.  xviii,  6.  He  set  a 
calf  before  them,  new  bread,  but  baked  upon 
the  hearth  ;  together  with  butter  and  milk.  It 
seems  they  had  some  sort  of  made  dislies, 
by  that  which  Rebecca  cooked  for  Isaac  :  but 
his  great  age  may  excuse  this  delicacy.  This 
dish  was  made  of  two  kids.  Gen.  xxvii,  9. 
Abraham  dressed  a  whole  calf  for  the  angels, 
and  three  measures  of  meal  made  into  bread, 
which  comes  to  more  than  two  of  our  bushels, 
and  nearly  to  fifty-six  pounds  of  our  weight. 
Whence  we  may  conclude  they  were  great 
eaters,   used  much  exercise,  and  were  perhaps 

3 


34  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  a  larger  stature  as  well  as  longer  lives  than 
we.  The  Greeks  seem  to  think  that  the  men  of 
the  heroic  ages  were  of  great  stature  ;  and 
Homer  makes  them  great  eaters.  When 
Eumseus  (Odyss.  xiv,  1.  74,  ib.  1.  419)  enter- 
tained Ulysses,  he  dressed  two  pigs,  probably 
young  ones,  for  himself  and  his  guest ;  and  on 
another  occasion,  a  hog  of  five  years  old  for 
five  persons. 

Homer's  heroes  wait  upon  themselves  in  the 
common  occasions  of  life ;  and  we  see  the  pa- 
triarchs do  the  same.  Abraham,  who  had  so 
many  servants,  and  was  nearly  a  hundred 
years  old,  brings  the  water  himself  to  wash  the 
feet  of  his  divine  guests,  bids  his  wife  make  the 
bread  quickly,  goes  himself  to  choose  the  meat, 
and  comes  again  to  serve  them  standing.  Gen. 
xviii,  4.  I  will  allow  that  he  was  animated 
upon  this  occasion  with  a  desire  of  showing 
hospitality  ;  but  all  the  rest  of  their  lives  is  of 
a  piece  with  it.  Their  servants  were  to  assist 
them,  but  not  so  as  to  exempt  them  from  work- 
ing themselves.  In  fact,  who  could  have 
obliged  Jacob,  when  he  went  into  Mesopotamia, 
to  travel  a  journey  of  more  than  two  hundred 
leagues  (for  it  was  at  least  so  far  from  Beer- 
sheba  to  Haran)  alone  and  on  foot,  with  only 
a  staff  in  his  hand  ?  Gen.  xxxii,  10.  What,  I 
say,  could  oblige  him  to  it  but  his  own  com- 
mendable plainness  and  love  of  toil  ?  Thus  he 
rests  where  night  overtakes  him,  and  lays  a 
stone  under  his  head  instead  of  a  pillow.  And 
although  he  was  so  tenderly  fond  of  Joseph,  he 


MANNERS    OF    THE"    ISRAELITES.  35 

does  not  scruple  sending  him  alone  from  He- 
bron  to  seek  his  brethren  at  Shechem,  which 
was  a  long  day's  journey  ;  and  when  Joseph 
does  not  find  them  there,  he  goes  on  to  Dothan, 
more  than  a  day's  journey  farther,  Gen. 
xxxvii,  15,  17,  and  all  this  when  he  was  but  six- 
teen years  old. 

It  was  this  plain  and  laborious  way  of  life, 
no  doubl,  that  made  them  attain  to  such  a  great 
old  age,  and  die  so  calmly.  Both  Abraham 
and  Isaac  lived  nearly  two  hundred  years. 
The  other  patriarchs,  whose  age  is  come  to 
our  knowledge,  exceeded  a  hundred  at  least, 
and  we  do  not  hear  that  they  were  ever  sick 
during  so  long  a  life.  He  gave  up  the  ghost, 
and  died  in  a  good  old  age,  full  of  days,  is  the 
manner  in  which  the  Scripture  describes  their 
death.  Gen.  xxv,  8.  The  first  time  wc  read 
of  physicians  is,  when  it  is  said  that  Joseph 
commanded  his  domestics  to  embalm  the  body 
of  his  father.  Gen.  1,  2.  This  was  in  Egypt ; 
and  many  have  ascribed  the  invention  of  physic 
to  the  Egyptians.     (Aug.  de  Civ.  Dei,  xvi,  25.) 

The  moderation  of  the  patriarchs  with  regard 
to  wives  is  no  less  to  be  admired,  when  we  con- 
sider, 1st,  They  were  allowed  to  have  several ; 
and  2dly,  Their  desire  of  a  numerous  posterity. 
Abraham,  whom  God  had  promised  to  make 
the  father  of  an  innumerable  people,  though  he 
had  a  barren  wife,  was  so  far  from  thinking  of 
taking  another  that  he  had  made  a  resolution 
of  leaving  his  substance  to  the  steward  of  his 
house.    Gen.  xv,  2.     He  did  not  take  a  second 


36  MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

till  he  was  eighty-six  years  old,  and  it  was  his 
own  wife  who  gave  her  to  him.*  We  must 
not  say  that  he  was  still  young  with  respect 
to  his  life,  which  was  a  hundred  and  seventy -five 
-years  long;  because  thirteen  years  after,  he  and 
Sarah,  who  was  ten  years  younger,  are  called 
old,  and  laughed  at  it  as  an  incredible  thing, 
when  God  promised  them  a  son.  Gen.  xviii, 
11.  As  old  as  Abraham  was,  and  as  desirous, 
as  we  may  suppose  him,  to  see  the  children  of 
Isaac,  he  did  not  marry  him  till  he  was  forty 
years  old,  Gen.  xxv,  20  ;  and  though  Rebecca 
had  no  child  for  twenty  years,  and  never  but 
two,  and  those  at  one  birth,  Gen.  xxv,  21,  &c, 
Isaac  had  no  other  wife. 

It  is  true,  Jacob  had  two  wives  at  the  same 
time,  and  as  many  concubines  ;  but  it  is  fit 
we  should  consider  the  reason  of  it.  He  stayed 
till  he  was  seventy-seven  with  his  father,  wait- 
ing for  the  important  blessing  which  he  had  a 
right  to  by  the  resignation  of  his  brother  :  at 
that  age  he  thought  of  marrying,  and  asked 
for  Rachel,  but  did  not  obtain  her  till  he  had 
served  seven  years.  Gen.  xxix,  20.  At  last 
then  he  married  at  eighty-four.^     They  gave 

*  Gen.  xvi,  2.  The  handmaids,  as  they  are  termed, 
were  a  sort  of  slaves,  one  of  which  was  usually  given 
by  a  father  to  his  daughter  on  her  marriage  :  hence 
they  were  considered  the  inalienable  property  of 
their  mistresses,  who  claimed  not  only  the  fruit  of 
their  labour,  but  also  the  very  children  they  bore. 
See  above,  and  also  chap,  xxix,  24,  29. 

t  When  Joseph  appeared  before  Pharaoh  he  was 
thirty  years  of  age,  Gen.  xli.  46,  at  which  time  his  fa- 


MANNERS    OF    TIIH    ISRAELITES.  37 

him  Leah  against  his  will,  and  he  kept  her, 
that  she  might  not  be  disgraced.  But  as  he  might 
have  more  wives  than  one,  or  marry  two  sisters, 
witiiout  the  breach  of  any  law  then  existing, 
he  took  her  too  that  he  had  first  engaged  to 
wed.  Gen.  xxix,  30.  When  she  found  herself 
barren,  she  gave  her  husband  a  handmaid  to 
have  children  by  her.  This  was  a  sort  of  adop- 
tion practised  at  that  time  :  and  her  sister  did 
the  same,  that  the  family  might  be  increased. 
From  all  which  St.  Augustine  draws  this  con- 
elusion  :  We  do  not  read  that  Jacob  desired 
any  more  than  one  wife,  or  made  use  of  more, 
without  strictly  observing  the  rides  of  conjugal 
chastity.  (De  Civ.  Dei,  xvi,  25,  38.)  We  must 
r.ot  imagine  he  had  other  wives  before  ;  for 
why  should  the  last  only  be  mentioned  ? 

And  yet  I  do  not  undertake  to  justify  all  the 
patriarchs  in  this  point.  The  story  of  Judah 
and  his  sons  affords  but  too  many  examples  of 
the  contrary.  Gen.  xxxviii.  I  would  only 
show  that  we  cannot,  with  justice,  accuse  those 
of  incontinence  whom  the  Scripture  reckons 
holy.  For  with  regard  to  the  rest  of  mankind 
they  were  from  that  time  very  much  corrupted. 
Such   then,   in   general,  was  the  first  state  of 

ther  was  121 ;  for  when  he  appeared  before  Pharaoh 
he  was  130  years  old,  Gen.  xlvii,  9,  and  nine  years  had 
elapsed  from  the  time  Joseph  was  presented  to  Pharoah 
till  the.  time  that  Jacob  and  his  family  came  into 
Egypt,  viz.,  seven  years  of  plenty  and  two  of  famine  ; 
consequently  Jacob  was  ninety-one  years  old  when 
Joseph  was  born.  (August,  de  Civit.  Dei,  lib.  xviii, 
c.  4.) 


38  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

God's  people.  An  entire  freedom,  without  any 
government  but  that  of  a  father,  who  was  an 
absolute  monarch  in  his  own  family.  A  life 
very  natural  and  easy,  through  a  great  abun- 
dance of  necessaries,  and  an  utter  contempt  of 
superfluities  ;  through  an  honest  labour,  ac- 
companied with  care  and  frugality,  without 
anxiety  or  ambition. 

Let  us  now  proceed  to  the  second  period  : 
which  is,  that  of  the  Israelites,  from  their 
coming  out  of  Egypt  to  the  Babylonish  cap- 
tivity. It  lasted  more  than  nine  hundred  years, 
and  most  of  the  sacred  writings  relate  to  it. 


PART  II. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Israelites — Their  Nobility. 

Though  the  people  were  already  very  nu- 
merous, they  were  still  called  the  children  of 
Israel,  as  if  they  had  been  but  one  family  ;  in 
the  same  manner  as  they  said,  the  children  of 
Edom,  the  children  of  Moab,  &c.  Indeed  all 
these  people  were  still  distinct  :  they  knew 
their  own  origin,  and  took  a  pride  in  preserv- 
ing the  name  of  their  author.  Thence  pro- 
bably it  comes  that  the  name  of  children  signi- 
fied, with  the  ancients,  a  nation,  or  certain 
sort  of  people.  Homer  often  says,  the  children 
of  the  Greeks,  and  the  children  of  the  Trojans, 
Tl\e  Greeks  used  to  say,  the  children  of  tha 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  39 

physicians  and  grammarians.  With  the  He- 
brews, the  children  of  the  east  are  eastern 
people  ;  the  children  of  Belial,  the  wicked ;  the 
children  of  men,  or  Adam,  mankind.  And  in 
the  gospel  we  often  see,  the  children  of  this 
world — of  darkness,  and  of  light — and  also,  ilie 
children  of  the  bridegroom,  for  those  that  go 
along  with  him  to  his  wedding. 

The  Israelites  were  divided  into  twelve 
tribes.  Gen.  xlix,  1-28.  There  was  the  same 
number  of  the  Ishmaelites,  Gen.  xxv,  13-16, 
and  as  many  of  the  Persians.  (Xenoph.  Cyrop., 
p.  5,  edit.  Steph.,  1581.)  The  people  of  Athens 
were  at  first  composed  of  four  tribes,  after- 
ward divided  into  ten,  to  which  they  gave  the 
names  of  ten  heroes,  who  for  this  reason  were 
called  Eponimy,  and  whose  statues  were  set 
up  in  the  public  exchange.  (Demost.  in  Timocr. 
in  Leptin.  et  ibi  Ulpian.  Ewwwipoe,  Hpcie?.)  The 
Roman  people  were  also  distributed  into  three 
or  four  tribes,  which  increased  to  thirty-five. 
The  names  of  them  are  still  upon  record.  But 
these  Athenian  and  Roman  tribes  were  made 
up  of  different  families,  collected  together  to 
keep  order  in  their  assemblies  and  elections  : 
whereas,  those  of  the  Israelites  were  naturally 
distinct,  and  were  only  twelve  large  families, 
descended  from  twelve  brothers. 

They  were  very  exact  in  keeping  their  gene- 
alogies, and  knew  all  the  succession  of  their 
ancestors,  as  high  as  the  patriarch  of  their 
tribe,  from  whom  it  is  easy  going  back  to  the 
first  man.     Thus  they   were  really  brethren. 


40  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

that  is  to  say,  kinsmen,  according  to  the  eastern 
language,  and  of  genuine  nobility,  if  ever  there 
was  such  a  thing  in  the  world. 

They  had  preserved  the  purity  of  their  fami- 
lies, by  taking  care,  as  their  fathers  did,  not 
to  marry  with  the  nations  descended  from  Ca- 
naan, who  were  under  a  curse.  Exod.  xxxiv, 
16  ;  Deut.  vii,  3.  For  we  do  not  find  that  the 
patriarchs  avoided  matches  with  any  other 
people,  or  that  they  were  expressly  forbidden 
by  the  law  to  marry  with  them.  Their  fami- 
lies wore  fixed  and  attached  by  the  same  law 
to  certain  lands,  on  which  they  were  obliged 
to  live,  during  the  space  of  the  nine  hundred 
years  I  have  mentioned.  Should  we  not  esteem 
that  family  very  noble,  indeed,  that  could  show  as 
long  a  succession  of  generations,  without  any  dis. 
graceful  weddings  in  it,  or  change  of  mansion  ? 
Few  noblemen  in  Europe  can  prove  so  much. 

What  deceives  us  in  this  respect  is,  our  not 
seeing  titles  among  the  Israelites  like  those  of 
our  nobility.  Every  one  was  called  plainly  by 
his  own  name  ;  but  their  names  signified  great 
things,  as  those  of  the  patriarchs.  The  name 
of  God  was  part  of  most  ;  which  was  in  a  man- 
ner a  short  prayer.  Elijah  and  Joel  are  made 
up  of  two  of  God's  names  joined  in  a  different 
way  :*  Jehoshaphat  and  Sephatiah  signify  the 
judgment  of  God  :   Jehozadak  and  Zedekiah, 

*  E[.i.i.\ii.    in    Hebrew    irvitf,    a.    contraction    of 
K1H  IT  ,L?S  Jehovah  lie  is  my  strong  God. 

Jokl  7jfli    signifies  willing   or  acquiescing,   from 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  41 

his  justice :  Johanan,  or  John,  the  son  of 
Hananiah,  his  mercy :  Nathanael,  Elnathan, 
Jonathan,  and  Nethaniah,  all  four  signify, 
God  given,  or  the  gift  of  God.  Sometimes  the 
name  of  God  was  understood,  as  in  Nathan, 
David,  Obed,  Uzzah,  Ezra  or  Esdras  :  as  is 
plain  by  Eliezer,  God  my  helper :  Uzziel,  God  my 
strength :  and  Obadiah,  the  Lord's  servant  : 
whore  it  is  expressed.  Some  of  their  names 
were  mysterious  and  prophetical,  as  that  of 
Joshua  or  Jesus,  Saviour,  and  those  which 
Hosea  and  Isaiah  gave  their  children  by  the 
order  of  God.  Hos.  i,  4  ;  Isa.  viii,  3.  Other 
names  showed  the  piety  of  their  fathers  ;  and  we 
may  see  instances  of  it  in  the  names  of  David's 
brethren  and  children.    1  Chron.  ii,  13,;  iii,  1. 

Such  are  the  names  which  appear  so  barba- 
rous to  us  for  want  of  understanding  the  He- 
brew tongue.  Are  they  not  full  as  significant 
as  those  of  castles  and  towns,  which  our  nobi- 
lity assume ?  The  Greek  names,  whose  sound 
we  are  so  fond  of,  are  of  the  same  import. 
Many  are  composed  of  the  names  of  their 
gods  :  as  Diodorus,  Diogenes,  Hermodorus, 
Hepho'siion,  Athenais,  Artemisia.  But  several 
are  derived  from  their  love  of  exercise,  particu- 
larly of  riding,  as  Philip,  Damasippus  or  Hippo- 
damns,  Hegesippus,  Hippomedon,  &c* 

4&P  yaal,  he  willed,  and  is  not  compounded  of  pp  vn  fi, 
Jehovah;  and  Sn  El,  the  strong  God,  as  the  abbe 
seems  to  have  supposed. 

*  Diodorus,  rov  dcoc  dupov,  the  gift  of  Jupiter. 
Diogenes,  yevog  rov  &0c,  bom  of  Jupiter.    Hermo- 


42  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

They  often  added  the  father's  name,  either 
for  distinction  or  respect's  sake,  to  show  that 
the  father  was  a  man  of  renown  :  perhaps 
Solomon  had  this  custom  in  his  eye  when  he 
said,  The  glory  of  children  are  their  fathers, 
Prov.  xvii,  6.  Thus  we  see,  in  Homer,  that 
the  Greeks  took  the  paternal  name  for  a  mark 
of  honour.*  Sometimes  the  mother's  name 
was  given  for  the  surname ;  as  when  the 
father  had  many  wives,  or  when  the  mother 
was  of  the  better  family.  So  Joab  and  his 
brethren  are  always  called  the  sons  of  Zeruia.h, 
who  was  David's  sister.  1  Chron.  ii,  16.  If 
the  name  of  the  father  was  not  distinction 
enough,  they  added  the  grandfather's,  as 
Gedaliah  the  son  of  Ahikam,  the  son  of  Sha- 
pha?i.  Jer.  xxxix,  14.  And  this  is  the  reason 
of  so  many  names  that  appear  tiresome  to  us : 
for  they  went  sometimes  as  high  as  the  great- 
grandfather, or  higher.  Sometimes  a  surname 
was  taken  from  the  head  of  a  particular 
branch,  from  a  town,  a  country,  or  a  nation,  if 
they  were  originally  strangers ;  as  Uriah  the 
Hittite,  Araunah  the  Jebuzite. 

dorus,  from  Ep/Mic  and  Supov,  the  gift  of  Mercury. 
Heph^stion,  Vulcan.  Athenais,  Minerva.  Arte- 
misia, Diana.  Philippus,  a  lover  of  horses.  Dama- 
sippus,  Hippomedon,  Hippodamus,  a  tamer  of  horses. 
Hegesippus,  chief  or  captain  of  horse. 

*  Uarpodev  e/c  yeverjg   ovojxa&v  avdpa  Enaorov. 

Iliad  x,  68. 
"  Call  every  single  person  by  his  name. 
And  add  the  father's  name  to  grace  the  son's." 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  43 

The  Greeks  had  no  surnames  but  what  they 
took  from  their  father  or  country.  The  Ro- 
mans had  family  names,  to  which  they  only 
added  the  distinction  of  some  great  office  or 
remarkable  victory;  but  in  deeds  they  always 
set  down  the  father's  name.  Many  of  the 
European  nations  still  retain  the  same  custom  ; 
and  most  of  our  surnames  come  from  the  pro. 
per  names  of  the  fathers,  which  have  remained 
with  their  children.  As  to  the  titles  of  lord- 
ships, they  are  not  above  seven  or  eight  hun- 
dred years  old,  no  more  than  the  lordships 
themselves.  We  must  not  be  surprised  to  see 
in  Scripture,  David  the  son  of  Jesse,  and 
Solomon  the  son  of  David,  any  more  than 
Alexander  the  son  of  Philip,  and  Ptolemy  the 
son  of  Legus,  in  Greek  authors. 

The  principal  distinction  that  birth  occa- 
sioned among  the  Israelites,  was  that  of  the 
Levites  and  priests.  The  whole  tribe  of  Levi 
was  dedicated  to  God,  and  had  no  inheritance 
but  the  tenths  and  the  first  fruits,  which  it  re- 
ceived from  the  other  tribes.  Of  all  the 
Levites,  the  descendants  of  Aaron  only  were 
priests ;  the  rest  were  employed  in  the  other 
functions  of  religion  ;  in  singing  psalms,  taking 
care  of  the  tabernacle  or  temple,  and  instruct- 
ing the  people.  Two  of  the  other  tribes  were 
sufficiently  distinguished.  That  of  Judah  was 
always  the  most  illustrious  and  the  most  nume- 
rous ;  of  which,  according  to  Jacob's  prophecy, 
their  kings  and  the  Messiah  himself  were  to 
come.    Gen.  xlix,  10.     That  of  Ephraim  held 


4  1  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  second  rank  on  account  of  Joseph.  Yet 
the  eldest  branches  and  the  heads  of  each 
family  were  most  esteemed  in  every  tribe  :  and 
this  made  Saul  say,  surprised  with  the  respect 
that  Samuel  paid  him,  Am  not  I  of  the  smallest 
of  the  tribes  of  Israel,  and  my  family  the  least 
of  all  the  families  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin? 
i  Sam.  ix,  21.  . 

Age,  too,  made  a  great  distinction  ;  and  the 
name  of  old  man  in  Scripture  generally  de- 
notes dignity.  Indeed,  there  was  nothing  but 
age  and  experience  that  could  distinguish  men 
equally  noble,  and  of  the  same  education  and 
employments,  and  almost  equally  rich. 


CHAPTER  II.  • 
Their  Employments — Agriculture. 

We  do  not  find  any  distinct  professions 
among  the  Israelites.  From  the  eldest  of  the 
tribe  of  Judah  to  the  youngest  of  that  of  Ben- 
jamin, they  were  all  husbandmen  and  shep- 
herds, driving  their  ploughs  and  watching 
their  flocks  themselves.  The  old  man  of 
Gibeah,  that  lodged  the  Levite,  whose  wife  was 
abused,  was  coming  back  at  night  from  his 
work,  when  he  invited  him  to  sojourn  with 
him.  Judg.  xix,  16.  Gideon  himself  was 
thrashing  his  corn  when  the  angel  told  him  he 
should  deliver  his  people,  Judg.  vi,  11.  Ruth 
got  into  the  good  graces  of  Boaz  by  gleaning 
at    his   harvest.     Saul,    though   a    king,    was 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  45 

driving  oxen  when  he  received  the  news  of 
the  danger  Jabesh  Gilead  was  in.  1  Sam. 
xi,  5.  Every  body  knows  that  David  was 
keeping  sheep,  when  Samuel  sent  to  look  for 
him  to  anoint  him  king,  1  Sam.  xvi,  11  :  and 
he  returned  to  his  flock  after  he  had  been 
called  to  play  upon  the  harp  before  Saul.  1 
Sam.  xvii,  15.  After  he  was  king,  his  sons 
made  a  great  feast  at  the  shearing  of  their 
sheep.  2  Sam.  xiii,  23.  Elisha  was  called  (o 
be  a  prophet  as  he  drove  one  of  his  father's 
twelve  ploughs.  1  Kings  xix,  19.  The  child 
that  he  brought  to  life  again  was  with  his 
father  at  the  harvest  when  it  fell  sick.  2  Kings 
iv,  18.  And  Judith's  husband,  though  very 
rich,  got  the  illness  of  which  he  died  on  the 
like  occasion.  Judith  vii,  3.  The  Scripture 
abounds  with  such  examples. 

This,  without  doubt,  is  what  most  offends 
those  who  are  not  acquainted  with  antiquity, 
and  have  no  opinion  of  any  customs  but  their 
own.  When  they  hear  of  ploughmen  and 
shepherds,  they  figure  to  themselves  a  parcel  of 
clownish  boors,  that  lead  a  slavish  miserable 
life,  in  poverty  and  contempt,  without  courage, 
without  sense  or  education.  They  do  not 
consider  that  what  makes  our  country  people 
commonly  so  wretched  is  their  being  slaves  to 
all  the  rest  of  mankind  :  since  they  work  not 
only  for  their  own  maintenance,  but  to  furnish 
necessaries  for  all  those  that  live  in  high  and 
polished  life.  For  it  is  the  countryman  that 
provides  for  the  citizens,  the  officers  of  the 


46  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

courts  of  judicature  and  treasury,  gentlemen, 
and  ecclesiastics  :  and  whatever  ways  we  make 
use  of  to  turn  money  into  provisions,  or  provi- 
sions into  money,  all  will  end  in  the  fruits  of 
the  earth,  and  those  animals  that  are  supported 
by  them.  Yet  when  we  compare  all  these 
different  conditions  together,  we  generally 
place  those  that  work  in  the  country  in  the  last 
rank  :  and  most  people  set  a  greater  value 
upon  fat  idle  citizens,  that  are  weak  and  lazy 
and  good  for  nothing,  because,  being  richer, 
they  live  more  luxuriously,  and  at  their  ease. 

But  if  we  imagine  a  country,  where  the  dif- 
ference of  conditions  is  not  so  great,  where  to 
live  genteelly  is  not  to  live  without  doing  any 
tiling  at  all,  but  carefully  to  preserve  one's  liberty, 
which  consists  in  being  subject  to  nothing  but 
the  laws  and  public  authority  ;  where  the  inha- 
bitants subsist  upon  their  own  stock,  without 
depending  upon  any  body,  and  are  content  with 
a  little,  rather  than  do  a  mean  thing  to  grow 
rich ;  a  country  where  idleness,  effeminacy, 
and  ignorance  of  what  is  necessary  for  the 
support  of  life,  are  discountenanced,  and  where 
pleasure  is  in  less  esteem  than  health  and 
strength  :  in  such  a  country  it  would  be  more 
creditable  to  plough,  or  keep  a  flock,  than  to 
follow  diversions,  and  idle  away  the  whole  of 
a  man's  time.  Now  there  is  no  necessity  of 
having  any  recourse  to  Plato's  commonwealth 
to  find  men  of  this  character,  for  so  lived  the 
greatest  part  of  mankind  for  nearly  four  thou- 
sand  years. 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  47 

To  begin  with  what  we  are  best  acquainted 
with.  Of  this  sort  were  the  maxims  of  the 
Greeks  and  Romans.  We  see  everywhere  in 
Homer  kings  and  princes  living  upon  the 
fruits  of  their  lands  and  their  flocks,  and  work- 
ing  with  their  own  hands.  (See  the  Iliad  and 
Odyssey  passim.)  Hesiod  has  written  a  poem 
on  purpose  to  recommend  husbandry,  as  the 
only  creditable  means  of  subsisting  and  improv- 
ing one's  fortune ;  and  finds  fault  with  his 
brother,  to  whom  he  addresses  it,  for  living  at 
other  people's  expense,  by  pleading  causes,  and 
following  affairs  of  that  kind.*  He  reckons 
this  employment,  which  is  the  sole  occupation 
of  so  many  among  us,  no  better  than  idleness. 
We  see  by  Xenophon's  (Economics  that  the 
Greeks  had  noway  lessened  their  opinion  of 
husbandry  when  they  were  at  the  highest  pitch 
of  politeness. 

We  must  not  therefore  impute  the  fondness 
of  the  Romans  for  husbandry  to  stupidity  and 
want  of  letters  :  it  is  rather  a  sign  of  their 
good  sense.  As  all  men  are  born  with  limbs 
and  bodies  fit  for  labour,  they  thought  every 
one  ought  to  make  use  of  them;  and  that  they 
could  not  do  it  to  better  purpose  than  in  making 
the  earth  afford  them  a  certain  maintenance 
and  innocent  plenty.  It  was  not,  however, 
covetousness   that   recommended   it  to   them  ; 

*  Hesiodi  opera  et  Dies,  lib.  i,  v.  26.  Hesiod 
flourished  about  876  years  before  the  Christian  era; 
and  was  the  first  poet  who  celebrated  agriculture  in 
verse. 


48  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

since  the  same  Romans  despised  gold  and  the 
presents  of  strangers.  Nor  was  it  want  of 
courage  and  bravery  ;  since  at  that  very  time 
they  subdued  all  Italy,  and  raised  those  power- 
ful armies  with  which  they  afterward  conquered 
the  whole  world.  On  the  contrary,  the  pain- 
ful and  frugal  life  they  led  in  the  country  was 
the  chief  reason  of  their  great  strength,  making 
their  bodies  robust  by  inuring  them  to  labour, 
and  accustoming  them  to  severe  discipline. 
Whoever  is  acquainted  with  the  life  of  Cato 
the  Censor  cannot  suspect  him  of  a  low  way 
of  thinking,  or  of  meanness  of  .spirit ;  yet  that 
great  man,  who  had  gone  through  all  the  offi- 
ces in  the  commonwealth  when  it  llourished 
most,  who  had  governed  provinces  and  com- 
manded armies  ;  that  great  orator,  lawyer,  and 
politican,  did  not  think  it  beneath  him  to  write 
of  the  various  ways  of  managing  lands  and 
vines,  the  method  of  building  stables  for  differ- 
ent sorts  of  beasts,  and  a  press  for  wine  or 
oil  ;  and  all  this  in  the  most  circumstantial 
manner ;  so  that,  we  see,  he  understood 
it  perfectly,  and  did  not  write  out  of  ostenta- 
tion or  vainglory,  but  lor  the  benefit  of  man- 
kind. 

Let  us  then  frankly  own  that  our  contempt 
of  husbandry   is   not   founded   upon   any  solid 
n  :   since  this  occupation  is  noway  incon- 
sistent with  courage,  or  any  other  virtue  that 
is  necessary  either  in  peace  or  war, or  even  in 

♦  See  hib  work  Dc  Rt  Husliccu 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  49 

true  politeness.  Whence  then  does  it  proceed? 
I  will  endeavour  to  show  the  real  cause.  It 
comes  only  from  use  and  the  old  customs  of 
our  own  country.  The  Franks  and  other 
people  of  Germany  lived  in  countries  that 
were  covered  with  forests  :  they  had  neither 
corn  nor  wine,  nor  any  good  fruits  ;  so  that 
they  were  obliged  to  live  by  hunting,  as  the 
savages  still  do  in  the  cold  countries  of  Ame- 
rica. After  they  had  crossed  the  Rhine,  and 
settled  on  better  lands,  they  were  ready  enough 
to  take  the  advantages  that  result  from  agri- 
culture, arts,  and  trade;  but  would  not  apply 
themselves  to  any  of  them.  They  hit  this  occu- 
pation to  the  Romans  whom  they  had  subdued, 
and  continued  in  their  ancient  ignorance,  which 
time  seemed  to  have  made  venerable ;  and 
attached  such  an  idea  of  nobility  to  it  as  we 
have  still  much  ado  to  abandon. 

But  in  the  same  degree  that  they  lessened 
the  esteem  for  agriculture,  they  brought  hunting 
into  credit,  of  which  the  ancients  made  but 
little  account.  They  held  it  in  the  highest 
repute,  and  advanced  it  to  very  great  perfec- 
tion, sparing  neither  pains  nor  expense.  This 
has  been  generally  the  employment  of  the  nobi- 
lity. Yet,  to  consider  things  in  a  true  light, 
the  labour  spent  in  tilling  the  ground,  and  rear- 
ing tame  creatures,  answers  at  lea§t  as  well  as 
that  which  only  aims  at  catching  wild  beasts, 
often  at  the  expense  of  tillage.  The  moderate 
pains  of  one  that  has  the  care  of  a  great  num- 
ber of  cattle  and  poultry,  is,  surely,  as  eligible 

4 


50  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

as  the  violent  and  unequal  exercise  of  a  hunter  ; 
and  oxen  and  sheep  are  at  least  as  useful  for 
our  support  as  dogs  and  horses.  It  may  well 
therefore  be  asserted  that  our  customs,  in  this 
point,  are  not  as  agreeable  to  reason  as  those 
of  the   ancients.* 

Besides,  the  Greeks  and  Romans  were  not 
the  only  people  that  esteemed  agriculture  as  the 
Hebrews  did :  the  Carthaginians,  who%  were 
originally  Phoenicians,  studied  it  much,  as  ap. 
pears  by  the  twenty-eight  books  which  Mago 
wrote  upon  that  subject.  (Varro's  Preface.)  The 
Egyptians  had  such  a  reverence  for  it  as  even  to 
adore  the  creatures  that  were  of  use  in  it.  The 
Persians,  in  the  height  of  their  power,  had  over- 
seers in  every  province  to  look  after  the  tillage 
of  the  ground.  Cyrus  the  younger  delighted 
in  planting  and  cultivating  a  garden  with  his 
own  hands.  (Xenoph.  GEcon.)  As  to  the  Chal- 
deans, we  cannot  doubt  of  thrir  being  well 
skilled  in  husbandry,  if  we  reflect  upon  the 
fruitfulness  of  the  plains  of  Babylon,  which  pro. 

*  This  relic  of  ancient  barbarism  is  continued 
among  us  in  full  vigour;  and  without  any  kind  of 
reason  to  vindicate  the  practice.  By  it  our  Gothic  an- 
cestors provided  for  their  sustenance ;  but  their  de- 
scendants use  it  as  a  species  of  pleasure,  without  being 
impelled  to  it  by  any  kind  of  necessity.  Often  the 
peaceable  inhabitants  of  a  whole  country  are  thrown 
into  confiisiQp  by  vast  numbers  of  dogs  and  horsemen, 
breaking  through  their  enclosures,  and  destroying  the 
hopes  of  their  agricultural  toil.  And  all  this  to  run  a 
poor  timid  helpless  animal  out  of  breath  !  Is  not  §>ich 
i  practice  as  this  as  disgraceful  to  humanity  as  it  is 
\  o  common  sense  ? 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  51 

duced  two  or  three  hundred  grains  for  one.* 
In  a  word,  the  history  of  China  teaches  us  that 
agriculture  was  also  in  high  esteem  among 
them  in  the  most  ancient  and  best  times.  No- 
thing but  the  tyranny  of  the  northern  nations 
has  made  it  so  generally  discsteemed. 

Let  us  then  divest  ourselves  of  the  mean 
opinion  we  have  conceived  of  it  from  our 
infancy.  Instead  of  our  villager,  where  we  see 
on  one  side  castles  and  houses  of  pleasure,  and 
on  the  other  miserable  huts  and  cottages,  let 
us  imagine  we  saw  those  spacious  farms  which 
the  Romans  called  villas,  that  contained  an 
apartment  for  the  master,  and  inner  yard  for 
poultry,  barns,  stables,  and  servants'  houses  ; 
and  all  this  in  exact  proportion,  well  built,  kept 
in  good  repair,  and  exceedingly  clean.  \S[e 
may  sec  descriptions  of  them  in  Varro  and 
Columella.  Their  slaves  were  most  of  them 
happier  than  our  country  people,  well  fed,  well 
clothed,  and  without  any  care  upon  their  hands 
for  the  sustenance  of  their  families.  The  mas- 
ters, frugal  as  they  were,  lived  more  to  their 
satisfaction  than  our  gentry.  We  read  in  Xe- 
nophon  of  an  Athenian  citizen,  who,  taking  a 
walk  every  morning  into  the  fields  to  look 
after  his  workmen,  at  the  same  time  promoted 
his  health  by  the  exercise  of  his  body,  and  in- 
creased his  substance  by  his  diligence  to  make 

*  Tov  de  r;/c  A//,u//7pof  napirov  code  aya&r/  endepeiv 
can,  uare  era  dcrjKocna — em  rptrjKocLa  eK(pepet,. 
Herodoi.  Clio.  p.  89.    Edit.  Steph.  1592. 


52  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  most  of  it.  (Xenoph.  (Econ.  and  Cic.  Cato 
Major,  c.  17.)  So  that  he  was  rich  enough  to 
give  liberally  to  religious  uses,  the  service  of 
his  frionds,  and  country.  Tully  mentions  seve- 
ral farmers  in  Sicily,  so  rich  and  magnificent 
as  to  have  their  houses  furnished  with  statues 
of  great  value,  and  were  possessed  of  gold  and 
silver  plate  of  chased  work.  (Lib.  iv,  in  ver. 
Edit.  Lond.  1680,  vol.  ii,  p.  272 L.) 

In  fine  it  must  be  owned  that  as  long  as  the 
nobility  and  rich  men  of  a  country  were  not 
above  this  most  ancient  of  all  professions,  their 
lives  were  more  happy,  because  more  conform- 
able to  nature.  They  lived  longer,  and  in 
better  health,  their  "bodies  were  fitter  for  the 
fatigue  of  war  and  travelling,  and  their  minds 
more  serious  and  composed.  Being  less  idle, 
they  were  not  so  tired  of  themselves,  nor  soli- 
citous in  refining  their  pleasures.  Labour  gave 
a  relish  to  the  smallest  diversions.  They  had 
fewer  evil  designs  in  their  heads,  and  less  temp- 
tation to  put  them  in  execution.  Their  plain 
and  frugal  way  of  living  did  not  admit  of  extra- 
vagance, or  occasion  their  running  into  debt. 
There  were,  of  consequence,  fewer  law  suits, 
selling  up  of  goods,  and  families  ruined  :  fewer 
frauds,  outrages,  and  such  other  crimes  as  real 
or  imaginary  poverty  makes  men  commit  when 
they  are  not  able  or  willing  to  work.  The 
worst  is,  that  the  example  of  the  rich  and  noble 
influences  every  body  else  :  whoever  thrives  so 
as  to  be  never  so  little  above  the  dregs  of  the 
people  is  ashamed  to  work,  especially  at  hus. 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  53 

bandry.  Hence  come  so  many  shifts  to  live 
by  one's  wits,  so  many  new  contrivances  as 
are  invented  every  day,  to  draw  money  out  of 
one  purse  into  another.  God  knows  best  how 
innocent  all  these  unnatural  ways  of  living 
are.  They  are  at  least  most  of  them  very 
precarious;  whereas  the  earth  will  always 
maintain  those  that  cultivate  it,  if  other  people 
do  not  take  its  produce  from  them. 

So  far  then  is  the  country  and  laborious  life 
of  the  Israelites  from  making  them  contempt, 
ible,  that   it  is  a  proof  of  their  wisdom,  good 
education,  and  resolution  to  observe  the  rules 
of  their  fathers.      They  knew   the   first   man 
was  placed  in  the  terrestrial  paradise  to  work 
there,  Gen.  ii,  15  ;   and  that,  after  his  fall,  he 
was  condemned  to  more  laborious  and  ungrate- 
ful toil.     Gen.  iii,  17.     They  were  convinced 
of  those  solid  truths  so  often  repeated  in  the 
books  of  Solomon  :   that  -poverty  is  the  fruit  of 
laziness.     Prov.  x.  4,  5.  That  he  who  sleeps  in 
summer,  instead  of  minding  his  harvest,  or  that 
ploughs  not  in  winter  for  fear  of  the  eold,  de- 
serves to  beg  and  have  nothing.  Prov.  xx,  4,  13. 
That  plenty  is  the  natural  consequence  of  labour 
and,  industry.     Prov.   xxvii.   18.      That  riches, 
too  hastily  got,  are  not  blessed,  Prov.  xx,  21. 
There  we  see  frugal  poverty,  with  cheerfulness 
and  plainness,  preferred  to  riches  and  abund- 
ance, with  strife  and  insolence,  Prov.  xvii,  1  ; 
xix,  1  ;  the  inconvenience  of  the  two  extremes 
of  poverty  and  wealth,  and  the  wise  man's  de- 
sires, confined  to  the  necessaries  of  life,  Prov. 


54  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

xxx,  8,  9.  He  even  enters  into  a  minute  detail 
of  economical  precepts :  Prepare  thy  work, 
saj's  he,  without,  and  make  it  Jit  for  thyself  in 
the  field,  and  afterward  build  thine  house,  Prov. 
xxiv,  27  ;  which  is  the  same  with  that  maxim 
in  Cato,  that  planting  requires  not  much  con- 
sideration, but  building  a  great  deal. 

Now  that  which  goes  by  the  name  of  icork, 
business,  goods,  in  the  book  of  Proverbs,  and 
throughout  the  whole  Scripture,  constantly  re- 
lates to  country  affairs;  it  always  means 
lands,  vines,  oxen,  and  sheep.  From  thence 
are  borrowed  most  of  the  metapborical  expres- 
sions. Kings  and  other  chiefs  are  called 
shepherds  ;  and  the  people,  their  flocks  ;  to  go- 
vern them,  is  to  find  pasture  for  them.  Thus, 
the  Israelites  sought  their  livelihood  only  from 
the  natural  sources,  which  arc  lands  and  cattle  : 
and  from  hence,  all  that  enriches  mankind, 
whether  by  manufactures,  trade,  rents,  or 
trafficking  with  money,  is  ultimately  derived.* 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  Nature  of  the  Soil — Its  Fruitfulness. 

The  Israelites  dwelt  in  the  land  that  was  pro- 
mised to  the  patriarchs,  which  the  Scripture  of- 
ten described  as  flowing  with  milk  and  honey,  to 

*  What  a  blessing  would  it  be  to  the  world,  were 
these  Limes  of  primitive  simplicity  and  common  sense 
restored  to  mankind. 


KANNBB8    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  55 

express  its  great  fertility.     This  country,  which 
is  bo  hot  in  comparison  of  ours,  lies  a  great  way 
within  the  temperate  zone,  between  thirty-one 
and  thirty-three  degrees  of  northern  latitude.   It 
is  bounded  on  the  south   by  very  high   moun- 
tains, that  defend  it  from  the  scorching  winds 
that  blow  from  the  Arabian  deserts,  and  which 
run  as  far  to  the  east  as  they  do.     The  Mediter- 
ranean, which  bounds  it  to  the  west  north-west, 
supplies  it  with  refreshing  breezes  ;  and  Mount 
Libanus,  that  is  situated  more  to  the  north,  in- 
tercepts those  that  are  colder.     The  Mediter- 
ranean is  what   the  Scripture  commonly  calls 
the  Great  Sea ;  for  the  Hebrews  knew  little  of 
the  ocean,  and  gave  the  name  of  seas  to  lakes 
and  all  great  waters.       The  inland  part  of  the 
country  is  varied  with  a  great  many  mountains 
and  hills  proper  for  vines,  fruit  trees,  and  small 
cattle  ;  and  the  valleys  abound  with  streams, 
very  necessary  to  water  the  country,  which  has 
no  river  but  Jordan.      Rain  falls  seldom,  but 
the  time  of  its  coming  is  well  regulated  :   it  falls 
in  the   spring    and   autumn,  and  is  therefore 
called    the  early  and  latter,  or  the  evening  and 
morning  rain,   in  Scripture,  which  reckons  the 
year  as  one  day.     In  summer,  the  great  dews 
compensate  for  the  scarcity  of  rain.     They  had 
plains  fit  for  tillage  and  pasture,  particularly  the 
great  plain  of  Galilee  :   and  this  variety  of  land, 
within  so  small  a  compass,  must  needs  afford 
very  beautiful  landscapes,  especially  where  a 
country  is  well  peopled  and  cultivated. 

For  we  are  not  to  judge  of  the  Holy  Land 


56  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

from  the  condition  it  is  now  in.  From  the 
time  of  the  crusades  it  was  laid  waste  by  con- 
tinual wars,  till  it  became  subject  to  the  Turks. 
By  these  means  it  is  now  almost  desolate. 
There  is  nothing  to  be  seen  but  little  paltry 
villages,  ruins,  lands  uncultivated  and  deserted, 
but  full  of  high  grass,  which  shows  their  natu- 
ral fertility.  The  Turks  neglect  it,  as  they  do 
their  other  provinces ;  and  several  of  the 
Arabian  clans,  called  Bedouins,  encamp  there 
at  pleasure,  and  plunder  it  with  impunity.  To 
know  then  what  it  was  formerly,  we  must  con- 
sult ancient  authors  ;  Josephus,  but  above  all 
the  Holy  Scriptures.  (Jos.  War,  b.  3,  c.  3. 
Ant.  b.  5,  c.  1,  5,  21.  Whiston's  Translation, 
fol.  Lond.  1737.)  Consider  the  report  which 
the  spies  made  that  were  sent  by  Moses,  and 
the  prodigious  bunch  of  grapes  they  brought 
back.  Numb,  xiii,  23.  And  that  we  may  not 
be  surprised  at  it,  let  us  compare  the  grapes  in 
France  with  those  in  Italy,  which  is  a  cold 
country  in  comparison  of  Palestine.  It  is  the 
same  with  regard  to  most  of  our  fruits.  Their 
names  still  show  that  we  had  them  originally 
from  Asia  and  Africa  :  but  they  have  not  re- 
tained their  extraordinary  size  and  natural 
flavour  with  their  names. 

The  Israelites  had  vast  crops  of  corn  and 
barley :  wheat  is  reckoned  among  the  chief 
commodities  that  they  carried  to  Tyre,  Ezek. 
xxvii,  17.  They  had  plenty  of  oil  and  honey. 
The  mountains  of  Judah  and  Ephraim  were 
great  vineyards.  (Josephus,  War, b.  l,c.  5.)  The 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  57 

palm,  trees  that  grow  about  Jericho  yielded  a 
considerable  profit  ;  and  it  was  the  only  place 
in  the  world  where  the  genuine  balsam  tree  was 
to  be  found.  (Fastidit  Balsamum  alibi  nasci. 
Plin.  Hist.  Nat.  lib.  xvi,  c.  32.)- 

This  fertility  of  their  country,  and  the  pains 
they  took  to  cultivate  it,  account  for  its  main- 
taining such  a  multitude  of  people,  though  it  was 
of  so  small  extent.     For  what  the  Scripture 
says  of  it  seems  hardly  credible  at  first  sight. 
When  the  people  first  came  into  this  land,  there 
were    more  than    six  hundred   thousand   men 
bearing  arms,  from  twenty  years  old  to.  sixty. 
Numb,  xi,  21.     In  the  war  of  Gibeah,  the  tribe 
of  Benjamin  alone,  which  was  the  least  of  all, 
had  an  army  o£twenty-six  thousand  men,  and  the 
rest  of   the    people  had  one  of  four  hundred 
tliousand.    Judg.  xx,  17.  Saul  headed  two  hun- 
dred and  ten  thousand  men  against  the  Amalek- 
ites,  when  he  rooted  them  out.    1  Sam.  xv,  4. 
David  always  kept  up  twelve  corps,  each  con. 
sisting    of  twenty-four    thousand   men,    which 
served  by  the  month,  and  amounted  to  two  hun- 
dred and  eighty  thousand.    1  Chron.  xxvii,  1. 
And    when   he  numbered    the    people,    which 
brought  down  the  wrath  of  God  upon  him,  there 
were  one  million  three  hundred  thousand  fight- 
ing  men.     2  Sam.  xxiv,  9.     Jehoshaphat  had 
move  in  proportion  :  for  though  he  had  scarcely 
a  third  part  of  David's  kingdom,  he  had  more 
troops  fit  for   war  ;  which,   altogether,    made 
eleven  hundred,  and  threescore  thousand  men,  all 
under  his  immediate  command,  beside  the  gar- 


58  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

risons  in  his  strong  places.  2  Chron.  xvii,  14, 
15,  &c. 

Nor  is  there  any  thing  incredible  in  all  this  : 
we  see  examples  to  the  same  purpose  in  profane 
history.  The  great  city  of  Thebes  in  Egypt 
furnished  out  of  its  own  inhabitants  alone  seven 
hundred  thousand  fighting  men.  Tacit.  Annal. 
ii.  In  the  year  188,  from  the  foundation  of 
Rome,  when  Servius  Tullius  first  numbered  the 
people,  they  reckoned  eighty  thousand  citizens 
fit  to  bear  arms.  Liv.  i,  24.  Yet  they  had  no- 
thing to  subsist  upon  but  the  land  about  Rome, 
which  is  now  most  of  it  barren  and  desolate  ; 
for  their  dominion  did  not  extend  above  eight 
or  ten  leagues.  (See  the  supplement  at  the  end 
of  this  chapter.) 

That  was  the  chief  foundation  of  their  poli- 
tics in  old  time.  In  the  multitude  of  people, 
says  the  wise  man,  is  the  king's  honour,  hut  in 
the  want  of  people  is  the  destruction  of  the 
prince.  Prov.  xiv.  28.  They  supported  them- 
selves much  less  by  cunning  than  real  strength. 
Instead  of  being  industrious  in  setting  spies 
upon  their  neighbours,  and  endeavouring  to  sow 
divisions  among  them,  or  gain  credit  by  false 
reports,  they  took  pains  to  people  and  cultivate 
their  own  country,  and  make  the  most  of  it  they 
possibly  could,  whether  it  was  small  or  great. 

They  endeavoured  to  make  marriages  easy, 
and  the  lives  of  married  people  comfortable  ;  to 
get  health  and  plenty,  and  draw  out  of  the 
ground  all  it  could  produce.  They  employed 
their  citizens  in  labour,  inspired  them  with  a 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  59 

love  of  their  country,  unanimity  among  them- 
selves, and  obedience  to  the  laws  :  this  is  what 
they  call  politics.  These  are  fine  maxims  it 
may  be  said  ;  but  let  us  come  to  matters  "Of  fact. 
Show  us  how  it  is  possible  that  so  small  a 
country  as  Palestine  should  maintain  so  great  a 
number  of  people.  In  order  to  do  this,  we 
must  have  patience  to  go  through  a  short  calcu- 
lation, and  not  to  think  it  below  us  to  descend 
to  particulars,  which  is  the  only  way  of  proving 
it  to  satisfaction. 

Josephus  has  preserved  a  valuable  fragment 
of  Hecatseus  the  Abderite,  who  lived  in  the 
time  of  Alexander  the  Great,  and  was  a  courtier 
of  Ptolemy  the  First.  After  relating  many  re- 
markable particulars  concerning  the  manners 
of  the  Jews,  he  adds,  that  the  country  they  in- 
habited contains  about  three  million  whites  of 
very  rich  and  fruitful  ground.  (Joseph,  cont. 
App.  b.  ii,  p.  990.  Whiston's  edit.  Lond.  fol. 
1737.)  The  arure,  according  to  Eustathius, 
was  a  hundred  square  cubits,  that  is,  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  feet,  which,  multiplied  into  so 
many  square  feet,  make  tiventy-tico  thousand 
five  hundred,  Eustath.  ex  Horn.  Now,  our 
arpent,  or  acre  of  a  hundred  perches,  contains 
forty  thousand  square  feet,  reckoning  the 
perch  but  twenty  feet.  So  nine  of  our  arpents 
make  sixteen  arures. 

I  have  informed  myself  of  the  produce  of  our 
best  land,  and  find  that  it  yields  five  quarters  of 
corn  per  arpent,  Paris  measure.  I  have  in- 
quired, likewise,  how  much  goes  to  the  susten- 


GO  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

auce  of  one  man,  and  find,  that,  at  the  allow, 
ance  of  two  pounds  and  six  ounces  of  bread  per 
day,  he  consumes  about  three  bushels  of  corn 
each  month,  which  comes  to  thirty-six  bushels 
per  year.  But  this  would  not  have  been 
enough  for  the  Israelites  ;  we  must  give  them 
at  least  double  ;  and  it  may  be  proved  from 
Scripture.  When  God  gave  them  manna  in 
the  wilderness,  he  ordered  each  man  to  take  an 
omer  of  it  every  day,  neither  more  nor  less, 
Exod.  xvi,  16  ;  and  it  is  often  said,  that  it  was 
as  much  as  a  man  could  eat.  Now,  an  omer, 
reduced  to  our  measure,  held  about  five  pints, 
and  its  weight  was  more  than  five  pounds  and  a 
half.  Ibid.  ver.  18.  It  was  then  about 
eighty-four  bushels  per  year  :  consequently, 
each  arpent,  or  acre,  could  maintain  but  two 
men  at  most ;  and  three  millions  of  arures 
making  one  million  six  hundred  eighty-seven 
thousand  five  hundred  arpents,  would  feed 
three  mlHio?i  three  hundred  and  seventy-five 
thousand,  men. 

I  know  very  well  this  number  would  not  be 
sufficient  to  furnish  out  the  one  million  two 
hundred  thousand  fighting  men  of  Jehoshaphat. 
He  had  not  dominion  over  half  the  land  ;  and 
though  all  the  Israelites  bore  arms  without  dis- 
tinction, there  were  always  a  great  many  per- 
sons among  them  unfit  for  war.  We  must 
reckon  nearly  as  many  women  as  men,  a  great 
many  old  men,  and  more  children  :  and  though 
in  proportion  they  need  less  food,  however  it 
must  require  a  great  deal  to  suffice  such  a  mul- 


MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  61 

titude.     Besides,  they  were  obliged  by  the  law 
to  let  the  land  have  rest  every  seventh  year. 

But  it  must  be  observed  that  this  passage  in 
Hecataeus  relates  only  to  the  ploughed  lands  of 
the  Jews,  and  those  too  that  were  most  fruitful. 
For  if  we  take  the  whole  extent  of  the  land  of 
Israel,  it  would  be  fourteen  times  as  much,  It 
cannot  be  computed  as  less  than  five  degrees 
square,  according  to  our  maps.  Now  one  de- 
greo  makes  two  million,  nine  hundred  thirty 
thousand,  two  hundred  fifty-nine  square  arpents; 
and  the  five  degrees,  fourteen  million,  six  hun- 
dred fifty-one  thousand,  two  hundred  and  ninety- 
five  arpents.  So  that  it  is  evident  Hecatteus  has 
reckoned  only  a  small  part.  He  has  left  out 
what  the  Samaritans  enjoyed  in  his  time  ;  their 
lakes,  deserts,  and  barren  grounds,  vineyards, 
plantations,  and  pastures,  of  which  they  must 
have  had  a  large  quantity  for  the  support  of 
their  great  herds  of  cattle.  For  beside  what 
they  bred,  they  had  some  from  other  countries. 
Ttie  king  of  Moab  paid  Ahab  king  of  Israel  a 
tribute  of  a  hundred  thousand  lambs,  and  as 
many  rams.  Other  Arabians  brought  Jehos- 
haphat  seven  thousand  seven  hundred  rams,  and 
as  many  he-goats,  2  Chron.  xvii,  11.  All  this 
cattle  was  a  great  help  to  maintaining  them, 
not  only  by  the  flesh,  but  the  milk.  Consider- 
ing that  the  Israelites  lived  in  a  simple  man- 
ner, and  laid  all  their  good  ground  in  tillage  ; 
for  they  had  few  groves,  no  parks  for  hunting, 
nor  avenues,  nor  flower  gardens.  We  see  by 
the  Song  of  Solomon  that  their  gardens  were 


62  MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

full  of  fruit  trees  and  aromatic  plants  :  wc  may 
therefore  be  in  still  less  concern  for  their  lodg- 
ing than  their  food,  since  half,  nay,  a  quarter  of 
an  acre,  is  more  than  sufficient  to  lodge,  not  only 
one  man,  but  a  whole  family,  with  ease  and  con- 
venience. 


SUPPLEMENT    TO    CHAPTER    III. 

Concerning  the  Population  of  Ancient  Nations. 

As  popular  arithmetic  is  become  a  subject  of 
considerable  importance,  the  reader  will  not  be 
displeased  to  see  the  following  collections  in  this 
place,  relative  to  the  population  of  some  ancient 
states. 

The  free  citizens  of  Sybaris,  able  to  bear 
arms,  and  actually  drawn  out  in  battle,  were 
300,000  :  they  encountered  at  Siagara  with 
100.000  of  Crotona,  a  neighbouring  Greek  city, 
and  were  defeated.  (Diod.  Sicul.,  lib.  xii.) 
JStrabo  confirms  this  account,  lib.  vi. 

The  citizens  of  Agrigentum  when  it  was  de- 
stroyed by  the  Carthaginians  amounted,  accord- 
ing to  Diodorus  Siculus,  (lib.  xiii.)  to  20,000, 
beside  200,000  strangers  ;  but  neither  the 
slaves  nor  women  and  children  are  included  in 
this  account.  On  the  whole,  this  city  must 
have  contained  nearly  2,000,000  of  inhabitants. 

Polvbiussays  (lib.  ii)  that  when  the  Romans 
were  threatened  with  an  invasion  from  the 
Gauls,  between  the  first  and  second  Punic  war, 
on  a  muster  of  their  own  forces,  and  those  of 


MANNERS   OF  THE  ISRAELITES.  63 

their  allies,  they  were  found  to  amount  to 
700,000  men  able  to  bear  arms.  The  country 
that  supplied  this  number  was  not  one-third  of 
Italy,  viz.,  the  pope's  dominions,  Tuscany,  and 
a  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Naples.  But  Diodorus 
Sieulus  (lib.  ii)  makes  the  same  enumeration 
amount  to  nearly  1,000,000. 

Julius  Cesar,  according  to  Appian,  (Ccltica), 
eneountered  4,000,000  of  Gauls,  killed  one 
million,  and  took  another  million  prisoners. 

Athena3us  says  (lib.  vi,  cap.  20)  that,  by  the 
enumeration  of  Demetrius  Phalerius,  there 
were  in  Athens  21,000  citizens,  18,000 
strangers,  and  400,000  slaves. 

The  same  author  says  that  Corinth  had 
once  400,000  slaves,  and  Egina,  470,000. 

The  Spartans,  says  Plutarch,  (in  vit.Lycurg.,) 
were  9000  in  the  town,  30,000  in  the  country  : 
the  male  slaves  must  have  been  78,000,  the 
whole  more  than  3,120,000. 

In  the  time  of  Diodorus  Sieulus  there  lived 
in  Alexandria  300,000  free  people  ;  and  this 
number  does  not  seem  to  comprehend  either  the 
slaves  (who  must  have  been  double  the  number 
of  grown  persons)  or  the  women  and  children, 
lib.  xvii. 

Appian  says(Ce/l.,  pars.  1)  that  there  were 
400  nations  in  Gaul ;  and  Diodorus  Sieulus 
says  (lib.  v)  that  the  largest  of  these  nations 
consisted  of  200,000  men,  beside  women  and 
children,  and  the  least  of  50,000.  Calculating 
therefore  at  a  medium,  we  must  admit  of 
nearly  200,000,000  of  people  in  that  country, 


64  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  population  of  which  does  not  now  amount 
to  30,000,000.  The  latter  historian  tells  us 
that  the  army  of  Ninus  was  composed  of 
1,700,000  foot,  and  200,000  horse,  (lib.  ii.) 
There  were  exact  bills  of  mortality  kept  at 
Rome  ;  but  no  ancient  author  has  given  us 
the  number  of  burials,  except  Suetonius,  who 
tells  us  that  in  one  season  30,000  names  were 
carried  to  the  temple  of  Libitina,  (the  goddess 
of  death,)  but  it  appears  that  a  plague  raged  at 
that  time.     (Suet,  in  vit.  Neronis.) 

Diodorus  Siculus  (lib.  ii)  says  that  Diony- 
sius  the  elder  had "  a  standing  army  of 
100,000  foot,  10,000  horse,  and  a  fleet  of  400 
galleys. 

If  the  preceding  statements  be  correct,  what 
desolations  must  have  taken  place  in  the  earth 
in  the  course  of  the  last  2000  years. 

Baron  Montesquieu  supposes  that  population 
is,  not  so  great  now  as  it  was  formerly. 
(Lettres  personnes,  et  l'Esprit  de  Loix,  liv. 
xxiii,  chap.  17,  18, 19.)  Travel  (says  this  sen- 
sible writer)  through  the  whole  earth,  and  you 
will  find  nothing  but  decay  ;  one  might  well 
suppose  it  to  be  just  arising  out  of  the  ravages 
of  the  plague  or  of  the  famine.  After  the 
most  exact  calculation  which  subjects  of  this 
nature  can  admit  of,  we  find  that  there  is 
scarcely  the  fiftieth  part  of  men  upon  the 
earth  now  that  there  was  in  the  time  of  Julius 
Cesar.  What  is  most  astonishing  is,  that  po- 
pulation  decreases  daily,  and  if  this  should  con- 
tinue, the  world  must  become  a  desert  in  the 


MANNERS    01     THE    ISRAELITES.  65 

course  often  centuries.  This  is  the  most  terri- 
ble catastrophe  that  lias  ever  taken  place  in  the 
world  ;  but  it  is  scarcely  perceived  because  it 
comes  insensibly,  and  in  the  course  of  a  great 
number  of  centuries  :  but  this  proves  that  an 
inward  decay,  a  secret  and  hidden  poison,  a 
languishing  disease,  afflicts  the  whole  course  of 
human  nature.  (See  Mr.  Hume's  Essay  on  the 
populousness  of  ancient  nations.) 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Riches  of  the  Israelites. 

Each  Israelite  had  his  field  to  till,  which 
was  the  same  that  had  been  allotted  to  his  an- 
cestors in  the  time  of  Joshua.  They  could 
neither  change  their  place,  nor  enrich  them- 
selves to  any  great  degree.  The  law  of  jubilee 
had  provided  against  that  by  revoking  all  alien- 
ations every  fifty  years,  and  forbidding  to 
exact  debts,  not  only  this  forty-ninth  year,  but 
every  sabbatical  year  :  for  as  the  ground  lay 
fallow  those  years,  it  was  but  reasonable  to 
put  a  stop  to  law  proceedings  at  the  same  time. 
Lev.  xxv,  10,  11,  &c.  (Joseph.  Antiq..  b.  iii, 
c.  12,  s.  3.  Whistoivs  edit.  fol.  Lond.  1737.) 
Now  this  difficult)/  of  being  paid  again  made 
it  not  so  easy  to  borrow  money,  and  consequently 
lessened  the  opportunities  of  impoverishment; 
which  was  the  design  of  law.  Besides,  the 
impossibility  of  making  lasting  purchases  gave 

5 


G3  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

a  check  to  ambition  and  anxiety ;  every  body 
was  confined  to  the  portion  of  his  ancestors, 
and  took  a  pleasure  in  making  the  best  of  ti, 
knowing  it  could  never  go  out  of  the  family. 

This  attachment  was  even  a  religious  duty 
founded  upon  the  law  of  God  :  and  thence  pro- 
ceeded  the  generous  opposition  made  by  Na- 
both,  when  King  Ahab  would  have  persuaded 
him  to  sell  the  inheritance  of  his  fathers.  1 
Kings  xxi,  3.  So  the  law  says  they  were  no 
more  than  usurfructuaries  of  their  land,  or  rather 
God's  tenants,  who  was  the  true  proprietor  of 
it.  Lev.  xxv,  23.  They  were  obliged  to  pay 
no  rent,  but  the  tenths  and  first  fruits  which  he 
had  commanded  :  and  Samuel  reckons  taxes 
upon  corn  and  wine  as  one  of  the  encroach- 
ments of  kings  that  he  threatens  the  people 
with.  1  Sam.  viii,  15.  All  the  Israelites  were 
then  very  nearly  equal  in  riches  as  well  as 
quality  :  and  if,  by  the  increase  of  a  family, 
the  estate  in  land  was  forced  to  be  divided  into 
more  shares,  it  was  to  be  made  up  with  in- 
dustry and  labour,  by  tilling  the  ground  more 
carefully,  and  breeding  greater  numbers  of 
cattle  in  deserts  and  commons. 

Thus  it  was  cattle  and  other  movables  that 
made  one  reachcr  than  another.  They  bred 
the  same  sort  of  creatures  as  the  patriarchs 
did,  and  always  many  more  females  than  males; 
otherwise  they  had  been  liable  to  many  incon- 
veniences, for  the  law  forbade  to  castrate  them. 
Lev.  xxii,  24.  They  had  no  horses,  nor  are 
they  of  any  great  use  in  mountainous  coun- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  07 

tries :  their  kings  had  them  out  of  Egypt, 
when  they  hud  occasion  for  them.  The  com- 
mon way  of  riding  was  upon  asses,  even  among 
the  rich.  To  give  us  a  great  idea  of  Jair, 
one  of  the  judges  over  the  people,  the  Scrip- 
ture  tells  us  that  be  had  thirty  sons  riding  upon 
thirty  asses,  Judg.  x,  4,  who  were  rulers 
of  thirty  cities.  It  is  recorded  of  Abdon,  an- 
other  judge,  that  he  had  forty  sons,  and  thirty 
grandsons,  that  rode  upon  threescore  and  ten 
asses,  Judges  xii,  14  ;  and  in  the  Song  of  De- 
borah, the  captains  of  Israel  are  described  as 
mounted  upon  sleek  and  .shining  asses.* 

It  does  not  appear  that  they  had  a  great 
number  of  slaves,  neither  had  they  any  occa- 
sion for  them,  being  so  industrious  and  nu- 
merous in  so  small  a  country.  They  chose  rather 
to  make  their  children  work,  whom  they  were 
obliged  to  maintain  :  who  served  them  better 
than  any  slaves.  The  Romans  found  a  great 
inconvenience  at  last  from  that  vast  multitude 
of  slaves  of  all  nations,  which  luxury  and  effe- 
minacy had  introduced  among  them  :  it  was 
one  of  the  chief  causes  of  the  ruin  of  that  em- 
pire. 

Ready  money  could  not  be  very  common 
amonir  the  Israelites  :   there  was  no  <jreat  occa- 

*  Judg.  v,  10.  nnv  tsachar  signifies  not  only 
white,  as  ii  is  translated  in  our  Bibles,  but  sleek  or 
shilling;  nitentes,  as,  the  Vulgate  has  it.  And  proba- 
bly the  asses  here  mentioned  might  be  both;  the  au- 
thor's words  are  anes  polls  el  brimns.  The  word  oe- 
ours  but  twice  in  the  Hebrew  Bible :  viz.,  in  the 
above  text,  and  Ezek.  xxvii,  18. 


68  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

sion  for  it  in  a  countrv  of  little  trade,  and 
where  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  alienate  lands 
or  run  into  debt,  Lev.  xxv,  10  ;  Deut.  xv,  1,  3. 
They  were  forbidden  to  take  usury  of  one  an- 
other,  though  they  might  of  strangers,  Lev. 
xxv,  36  ;  Deut.  xxiii,  19:  but  if  they  observed 
their  law,  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  have  any 
dealings  with  foreigners.  2  Chron.  ii,  17. 
Thus  their  wealth,  as  I  said  before,  consisted 
chiefly  ill  land  and  cattle. 

And  thovaro  riches  of  (his  kind  which  God 
promises  thorn,  such  as  are  most  natural  and 
substantial.  He  speaks  to  them  neither  of 
gold,  nor  silver,  nor  precious  stones,  nor  fine 
furniture ;  much  less  of  other  riches  which 
depend  more  upon  trade,  and  the  inventions  of 
men  :  but  he  says  he  will  send  rain  in  its 
season,  that  the  earth  shall  bring  forth  corn  in 
abundance,  that  the  trees  shall  be  laden  with 
fruit,  that  the  harvest,  the  vintage,  and  seed 
time,  shall  follow  one  another  without  inter- 
ruption. Lev.  xxvi,  3,  &c.  He  promises  them 
plenty  of  food,  undisturbed  sleep,  safety,  peace, 
and  even  victory  over  their  enemies.  He  adds, 
that  he  will  make  them  increase  and  multiply 
by  looking  favourably  upon  them,  that  his  bless- 
ing shall  make  their  wives  fruitful,  that  he 
will  bless  their  herds  of  cattle,  and  flocks  of 
sheep,  their  granaries  and  cellars,  and  the 
works  of  their  hands,  Deut.  xxviii,  4.  These 
are  the  temporal  good  tilings  which  God  allows 
men  to  expect  from  him. 


llAHNSBI    Or    THE    ISRAELITES.  09 

CHAPTER  V. 
Their  Arts  and  Trades. 

We  know  no  people  more  entirely  addicted 
to  agriculture  than  the  Israelites.  The  Egyp- 
tians and  Syrians  joined  manufactures,  navi- 
gation, and  trade  to  it  :  but  above  all,  the 
Phoenicians,  who,  finding  themselves  straitened 
in  point  of  room,  from  the  time  that  the  Israel- 
ites drove  them  out  of  their  country,  were 
obliged  to  live  by  trade,  and  be  in  a  manner 
brokers  and  factors  for  all  the  rest  of  the  world. 
The  Greeks  imitated  them,  and  excelled  chiefly 
in  arts.  On  the  contrary,  the  Romains  de- 
spised mechanics,  and  applied  themselves  to 
commerce,  (Joseph,  conl.  App.l.  i,  12.)  As  for 
the  Israelites  their  land  was  sufficient  to  main- 
tain them  ;  and  the  seacoasts  were,  for  the  most 
part,  possessed  by  the  Philistines  and  Ca- 
naanites,  who  were  the  Phoenicians.  There  was 
only  the  tribe  of  Zabulon,  whose  share  of  land 
lay  near  the  sea,  that  had  any  temptation  to 
trade  :  which  seems  to  be  foretold  in  the  bless- 
ings pronounced  bv  Jacob  and  Moses.  Gen. 
xlix,  13  ;   Deut.  xxxiii,  18. 

Nor  do  we  sec  that  they  applied  themselves 
any  more  to  manufactures.  Not  that  arts  were 
not  then  invented  :  many  of  them  are  older 
than  the  flood,  Gen.  iv,  20-22  :  and  we  find 
that  the  Israelites  had  excellent  workmen,  at 
least  as  early  as  the  time  of  Moses.     Bczaleel 


70  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  Aholiab,  who  made  the  tabernacle  and 
every  thins  that  was  necessarv  for  the  service 
of  God,  are  an  instance  that  puts  this  past  dis- 
pute. Exod.  xxxi,  2,  6  ;  xxxvi,  xxxvii,&c.  It 
is  surprising  how  they  came  to  be  so  well 
skilled  in  arts  that  were  not  only  very  difficult, 
but  very  different  from  one  another.  They 
understood  melting  of  metals,  cutting  and  en- 
graving  precious  stones  :  they  were  joiners, 
makers  of  tapestry,  embroiderers,  and  per- 
fumers. 

There  arc  two  of  these  arts  that  I  most  of 
all  admire,  the  cutting  of  jewels,  and  the  cast- 
ing fijrurcs,  Exod.  xxxi,  5:  such  as  the  cheru- 
bim  of  the  ark,  and  the  golden  calf  which  was 
made  at  that  time.  They  who  understand  the 
arts  ever  so  little,  know  how  much  ingenuity 
and  what  a  number  of  tools  those  works  re- 
quire. If  they  were  invented  before,  it  is  a 
sign  that  even  the  arts  which  serve  only  for  or- 
nament were  then  brought  to  great  perfection  : 
and  if  they  had  any  secret,  to  do  the  same 
thing  with  more  ease  and  a  less  apparatus, 
it  was  still  a  higher  degree  of  improvement. 
But  this  is  only,  by  the  by,  to  show  that  people 
were  not  so  dull  and  ignorant  in  these  ancient 
times  as  many  imagine,  the  world  being  two 
thousand  five  hundred  years  old  in  the  days  of 
Moses. 

But  whether  these  two  famous  workmen  had 
learnt  from  the  Egyptians,  or  their  skill  was 
miraculous  and  inspired  by  God,  as  the  Scrip- 
tures seem  to  say,  it  does  not  appear  that  they 


MAXXERS    01     THE    ISRAELITES.  71 

had  any  to  succeed  them,  nor  that  any  of  the 
Israelites  were  artificers  by  profession,  and 
worked  for  the  public  till  the  time  of  the  kings. 
When  Saul  began  to  reign,  it  is  taken  notice  of 
that  there  was  no  workman  that  understood 
forging  iron  in  all  the  land  of  Israel,  1  Sam. 
xiii,  19  ;  and  that  they  were  forced  to  go  to  the 
Philistines  to  sharpen  even  the  instruments 
which  they  used  in  husbandry.  It  is  true,  this 
was  owing  to  the  oppression  of  the  Philistines, 
to  hinder  them  from  making  arms.  But  seve- 
ral years  after,  David  was  obliged,  when  he  fled, 
to  take  the  sword  of  Goliah,  which  must  have 
been  rather  too  heavy  for  him,  and  take  it  too 
out  of  God's  tabernacle,  1  Sam.  xxi,  9,  where  it 
was  hung  up  for  a  lasting  monument  of  his  vic- 
tory. This  makes  me  think  there  wore  no 
arms  to  be  bought. 

It  seems  likewise  as  if  there  was  no  bread 
sold  ;  since  upon  the  same  occasion,  Abimelech 
the  priest  was  obliged  to  give  David  the  show- 
bread  ;  which  intimates,  moreover,  that  people 
kept  but  little  bread  in  their  houses — it  may  be, 
upon  account  of  the  country's  being  so  hot.  So 
the  witch  to  whom  Saul  went,  made  him  bread 
on  purpose  when  she  entertained  him,  that  he 
might  recover  his  strength,  1  Sam.  xxviii,  24. 
Every  one  had  an  oven  in  his  own  house, 
since  the  law  threatens  them,  as  with  a  great 
misfortune,  that  ten  women  should  bake 
their  bread  at  one  oven.  Lev.  xxvi,  26. 
At  Rome  there  were  no  bakers  till  the 
time  of  the  Persian  war,  more  than  five  hun- 


72  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

dred  and  eighty  year3  after  the  foundation  of 
the  city.* 

Were  we  to  reckon  up  all  trades  particularly, 
it  would  appear  that  many  would  have  been  of 
no  use  to  them.  Their  plain  way  of  living, 
and  the  mildness  of  the  climate,  made  that  long 
train  of  conveniences  unnecessary,  which  wc 
think  it  hard  to  be  without ;  though  vanity  and 
effeminacy,  more  than  real  want,  have  intro- 
duced them.  And  as  to  things  that  were  ab- 
solutely necessary,  there  were  few  of  them  that 
they  did  not  know  how  to  make  themselves. 
All  sorts  of  food  were  cooked  withindoors.  The 
women  made  bread  and  prepared  the  victuals, 
they  spun  wool,  made  stuffs  and  wearing 
apparel  ;  the  men  took  care  of  the  rest. 

Homer  describes  old  Eumccus  making  his 
own  shoes,  and  says  that  he  had  built  fine  stalls 
for  the  cattle  he  bred.f  Ulysses  himself  built 
his  own  house,  and  set  up  his  bed  with  great 
art,  the  structure  of  which  served  to  make  him 
known  to  Penelope  again.  (Odyss,  lib.  xxiii,  v. 
183-204.)  When  he  left  Calypso,  it  was  he 
alone  that  built  and  rigged  the  ship  ;  from  all 
which    wc   see    the    spirit     of    these    ancient 

*  Pislores,  Romoe  non  fuerimt  ad  Persicum  usque 
bellum,  annis  ab  urbe  condita  super  580.  Ipsi  panem 
faciebant  Gluirites,  mulierum  id  opus  erat.  Plin. 
Hist.  Nat.  lib.  xviii,  oil. 

f  Arroc  d'oMpt  tcoSeogiv  toi.r  apapicice  rredi?^, 
Ta/iviov  Sepita  Soetov,  evxpoc^. 

Odyss.  lib.  xiv,  v.  "23. 
Here  sat  Eumseus,  and  bis  care  applied 
To  form  strong  buskins  of  well  season'd  hide. 

Pope. 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  73 

times.  (Odyss.  lib.  v.  243-257.)  It  was  es- 
teemed an  honour  for  each  person  to  under- 
stand the  making  of  every  thing  necessary  for 
life,  without  any  dependence  upon  others,  and 
it  is  that  which  Homer  most  commonly  calls 
wisdom  and  knowledge.  Now,  I  must  say, 
the  authority  of  Homer  appears  to  me  very 
great  in  this  case.  As  he  lived  about  the  time 
of  the  Prophet  Elijah,  and  in  Asia  Minor,  all 
the  accounts  that  he  gives  of  the  Greek  and 
Trojan  customs*  have  a  wonderful  resemblance 
with  what  the  Scripture  informs  us  of  concern- 
ing the  manners  of  the  Hebrews  and  other 
eastern  people,  (Mann.  ArUndel;)  only  the 
Greeks,  not  being  so  ancient,  were  not  so 
polite. 

But,  however  it  might  be  in  former  times,  we 
are  sure  that  David  left  a  great  number  of  arti- 
ficers in  his  kingdom  of  all  sorts  ;  masons, 
carpenters,  blacksmiths,  goldsmiths,  and,  in- 
deed, all  such  as  work  in  stone,  wood,  and  me- 
tals. 1  Chron.  xxii,  15,  16.  And  that  we  may 
not  think  they  were  strangers,  it  is  said  that 
Solomon  chose  out  of  Israel  thirty  thousand 
workmen,  and  that  he  had  seventy  thousand 
that  bare  burdens,  and  eighty  thousand  hewers 
in  the  mountains.  1  Kings  v,  13,  15.  It  is 
true  he  borrowed  workmen  of  the  king  of 
Tyre,  1  Kings  v,  1-12 ;  vii,  13,  &c.  ;  and 
owned  that  his  subjects  did  not  understand 
cutting  wood  so  well  as  the  Sidonians,  and  that 
he  sent  for  Hiram,  an  excellent  founder,  to 
make  the  sacred  vessels. 


74  MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES. 

But,  luxury  increasing  after  the  division  of 
the  two  kingdoms,  there  is  reason  to  believe 
they  had  always  plenty  of  workmen.  In  the 
genealogy  of  the  tribe  of  Judah,  we  may  ob- 
serve,  there  is  a  place  called  the  valley  of 
craftsmen*  because,  says  the  Scripture,  they 
dwelt  there.  There  is  likewise  mention  made 
in  the  same  place  of  people  that  wrought  fine 
linen,  and  of  potters  who  worked  for  the  king 
and  dwelt  in  his  gardens.  All  this  shows  the 
respect  that  was  paid  to  famous  mechanics, 
and  the  care  that  was  taken  to  preserve  their 
memory.  The  Prophet  Isaiah,  among  his  me- 
naces against  Jerusalem,  foretells  that  God 
will  take  away  from  her  the  cuntiing  artificers, 
Isaiah  iii,  3  :  and  when  it  was  taken  it  is  often 
said  that  they  carried  away  the  very  workmen. 
2  Kings  xxiv,  14.  But  we  have  a  proof  from 
Ezekicl  that  they  never  had  any  considerable 
manufactures  when  the  prophet,  describing  the 
abundance  of  their  merchandize  which  came  to 
Tyre,  mentions  nothing  brought  from  the  land 
of  Judah  and  Israel  but  wheat,  oil,  resin,  and 
balm,  Ezek.  xxvii,  17  ;  all  of  them  commodi- 
ties that  the  earth  itself  produced. 

These  were  the  employments  of  the  Israel- 

*  1  Chron.  iv,  14.  The  valley  of  craftsmen 
D'&'^n  Wl  gi*  charashim,  translated  vallis  artijicum, 
by  the  Vulgate,  unn  char  ash,  signifies  to  work  in 
iron,  wood,  stone,  pottery,  &c.,  and  Joab,  the  person 
mentioned  in  the  text,  is  styled  by  R^bbi  Joseph's 
Targum,  the  chief  or  superintendent  of4he  craftsmen  or 
artificers. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  75 

ites,  and  their  manner  of  subsisting.  Let  us 
now  come  to  something  more  particular,  and 
describe  their  apparel,  their  houses,  furniture, 
food,  and  whole  manner  of  living,  as  exactly 
as  we  can.  They  rose  early,  as  the  Scripture 
observes  in  a  great  number  of  places,  that  is, 
as  often  as  it  mentions  any  action,  though 
never  so  inconsiderable.  Hence  it  conies  that, 
in  their  style,  to  rise  early  signifies,  in  general, 
to  do  a  thing  sedulously,  and  with  a  good 
will  :  thus  it  is  frequently  said>  that  God  rose 
up.  early  to  send  the  prophets  to  his  people,  and 
exhort  them  to  repentance.  2  Chron.  xxxvii, 
15.  It  is  a  consequence  of  country  labour. 
The  Greeks  and  Romans  followed  the  same 
custom :  they  rose  very  early,  and  worked  till 
night :  they  bathed,  supped,  and  went  to  bed  in 
good  time. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Their  Wearing  Apparel.* 

As  to  the  clothes  of  the  Israelites,  we  cannot 
know  exactly  the  shape  of  them.  They  had  no 
pictures  or  statues,  and  there  is  no  coming  at  a 
right  notion  of  these  things  without  seeing  them. 

*  There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  dress  of 
the  Jews  was  similar  to  that  of  the  ancient  Egyptians ; 
and,  as  many  statues  and  monuments  of  Egyptian 
antiquity  still  remain,  we  may  see  by  them  what  the 
ancient  Jewish  habits  were.  A  tunic  was  the  princi- 
pal part  of  their  dress: ., this  was  made  nearly  in  the 


76  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

But  one  may  give  a  guess  at  them  from  the 
statues  which  remain  of  the  Greeks  and  other 
nations  :  for,  as  to  modern  pictures,  most  of 
them  serve  only  tc  give  us  false  ideas.  I  do 
not  speak  only  of  those  Gothic  paintings  in 
which  every  person,  let  him  have  lived  ichere 
and  when  he  would,  is  dressed  like  those  the 
painter  was  used  to  see, — that  is,  as  the 
French  or  Germans  were  some  hundred  years 
ago, — I  mean  the  works  of  the  greatest  painters 
except  Raphael,  Poussin,  and  some  few  others 
that  have  thoroughly  studied  the  manner  or 
costume  of  each  age,  as  they  call  it.  All  the 
rest  have  had  no  more  sense  than  to  paint  the 
people  of  the  cast  such  as  they  saw  at  Venice 
or  other  parts  of  Italy  ;  and  for  the  stories  of 
the  New  Testament,  they  painted  the  Jews  like 
those  of  their  own  country.  However,  as 
most  Scripture  painting  is  copied  from  these 
originals,  we  have  taken  the  impression  of  it 
from  our  infancy,  and  are  used  to  form  to  our- 

form  of  our  present  shirt.  A  round  hole  was  cut  at 
the  top  merely  to  permit  the  head  to  pass  through. 
Sometimes  it  had  long  sleeves  which  reached  down  to 
the  wrists  ;  at  other  times  short  sleeves  which  reached 
to  the  elbow  ;  and  some  had  very  -<hort  sleeves  which 
reached  only  to  the  middle  of  the  upper  arm,  and 
some  had  no  sleeves  at  all.  The  tunic  was  nearly 
the  same  with  the  Roman  stola,  and  was,  in  general, 
girded  around  the  waist  or  under  the  breasts  with  the 
zona,  or  girdle.  Beside  the  tunic  they  wore  the 
pallium  which  covered  the  shoulders  and  back,  and  was 
the  same  with  the  chlamys  of  the  Greeks.  Indeed,  all 
these  ancient  nations  seem  to  have  had  nearly  the 
same  dress. 


MANNERS    OK    THE    ISRAELITES.  77 

selves  an  idea  of  the  patriarchs  with  turbans, 
and  beards  down  to  their  waist  ;  and  of  the 
Pharisees  in  the  gospel  with  hoods  and  pouches. 
There  is  no  great  evil  in  being  deceived  in 
all  this ;  but  it  is  better  not  be  deceived,  if 
possible. 

The  ancients  commonly  wore  long  garments, 
as  most  nations  in  the  world  still  do,  and  as  we 
ourselves  did  in  Europe  not  above  two  hundred 
years  ago.  One  may  much  sooner  cover  the 
whole  body  all  at  once,  than  each  part  of  it 
singly  ;  and  long  garments  have  more  dignity 
and  gracefulness.  In  hot  countries  they  al- 
ways wore  a  wide  dress,  and  never  concerned 
themselves  about  covering  the  arms  or  legs,  or 
wore  any  thing  upon  the  feet  but  soles 
fastened  in  ditferent  ways.  Thus  their  dress 
took  bat  little  making  :  it  was  only  a  large 
piece  of  cloth  shaped  into  a  garment ;  there  was 
nothing  to  cut,  and  not  much  to  sew.  They 
had  likewise  the  art  of  weaving  gowns  with 
sleeves  all  of  one  piece,  and  without  seam,  as 
our  Saviour's  coat  was.     John  xix,  23. 

The  fashions  never  changed,  nor  do  they 
now,  in  any  part  of  the  east.  ,  And  since 
clothes  are  made  to  cover  the  body,  and  men's 
bodies  arealike  in  all  ages,  there  is  no  occasion 
for  the  prodigious  variety  of  dresses,  and  such 
frequent  changes,  as  we  are  used  to.  It  is  rea- 
sonable to  seek  that  which  is  most  convenient, 
that  the  body  may  be  sufficiently  defended 
against  the  injuries  of  the  weather  according 
to  the  climate  and  season,  and  be  at  perfect 


73  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

liberty  in  all  its  motions.  There  must  be  a 
proper  respect  paid  to  decency,  age,  sex,  and 
profession.  One  may  have  an  eye,  likewise, 
to  the  handsomeness  of  clothes,  provided, 
under  that  pretence,  we  do  not  wear  uneasy 
ornaments,  and  are  contented,  as  the  ancients 
were,  with  agreeable  colours  and  natural 
drapery  :  but  when  once  we  have  found  what 
is  handsome  and  convenient,  we  ought  by  no 
means  to  change. 

Nor  are  they  the  wisest  people  who  invent 
new  fashions  :  they  are  generally  women  and 
young  'people,  with  the  assistance  of  mercers, 
milliners,  and  tailors,  who  have  no  other  view 
but  their  own  interest.  Yet  these  trifles  have 
very  grievous  consequences.  The  expense  oc- 
casioned hj  superfluous  ornaments  and  the 
changing  of  fashions  is  very  hard  upon  most 
people  of  moderate  circumstances,  and  is  one 
reason  that  marrying  is  so  difficult  ;  it  is  a  con- 
tinual source  of  quarrels  between  the  old  and 
young,  and  the  reverence  for  ancient  times  is 
much  lessened  by  it.  Young  fantastical  peo- 
ple, when  they  see  their  ancestors'  pictures  in 
dresses  which  are  only  ridiculous  because  they 
are  not  used  to  them,  can  hardly  believe  they 
were  persons  of  a  good  understanding,  or  their 
maxims  fit  to  be  followed.  In  a  word,  they 
that  pretend  to  be  so  very  nice  and  exact  in 
their  dress  must  spend  a  great  deal  of  their  time 
in  it,  and  make  it  a  study,  of  no  use,  surely, 
toward  improving  their  minds  or  rendering 
them  capable  of  great  undertakings. 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  79 

As  the  ancients  did  not  change  their  fashions, 
the  rich  had  always  great  quantities  of  clothes 
by  them,  and  were  not  liable  to  the  inconve- 
nience of  waiting  for  a  new  suit  or  having  it 
made  up  in  haste.  Lucullus  had  five  thousand 
cloaks  in  his  wardrobe,'''  which  was  a  sort  of 
military  dress  ;  by  which  we  may  judge  of  what 
he  had  beside.  It  was  common  to  make  presents 
of  clothes  ;  and  then  they  always  gave  two  suits, 
for  change,  and  that  one  might  be  worn  while 
the  other  was  washing,  as  we  do  with  our  sets 
of  linen. 

The  stuffs  were  generally  made  of  wool.  In 
Egypt  and  Syria  they  wore  also  fine  linen, 
cotton,  and  byssus,  which  was  finer  than  all  the 
rest.  This  byssus,  which  the  Scripture  so 
often  mentions,  is  a  sort  of  silk  of  a  golden 
yellow  that  grows  upon  great  shell  fish. — 
(Gesner.  Hist.  Anim.  1.  iv,  de  Pinna.)  As  to 
our  silk  made  from  worms,  it  was  unknown  in 
the  time  of  the  Israelites,  and  the  use  of  it  did 
not  become  common  on  this  side  the  Indies  toll 

Chlamydes  Lucullus,  ul  aiunt, 


Si  posset  centum  scenae  praebere  rogatus, 

Glui  possum  tot  ]  ait : 

post  paulo  scribit,  sibi  millia  quinque 

Esse  domi  Chi  amy  (hint. 

Hon  at.  Epist.  lib  i,  E.  vi,  v.  40-41. 
As  this  was  a  kind  of  military  dress,  it  is  probable 
that  Lucullus  had  them  principally  for  the  purpose  of 
clothing  his  soldiers.  Lucullus  commaded  the  Ro- 
man armies  against  Mithridatcs,  king  of  Pontus,  and 
THgranes,  king  of  Armenia,  and  was  honoured  with 
a  triumph  in  the  year  691.  He  is  accused  of  being 
the  first  who  introduced  luxury  among  the  Romans. 


SO  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

more  than  five  hundred  years  after  Christ. 
The  beauty  of  their  clothes  consisted  in  the 
fineness  and  colour  of  the  stuff.  The  most 
esteemed  were  the  white  and  the  purple,  red  or 
violet.  And  it  seems  white  was  the  colour 
most  in  use  among  the  Israelites,  as  well  as  the 
Greeks  and  Romans ;  since  Solomon  says. 
Let  thy  garments  be  always  white,  Eccles.  ix, 
8,  meaning  clean.  Nothing  in  reality  can  be 
plainer  than  to  make  use  of  wool  or  flax  just  as 
nature  produces  it,  without  dying.  Young 
people  of  both  sexes  wore  clothes  variegated 
with  divers  colours.  Such  was  Joseph's  coat 
which  his  brethren  spoiled  him  of  when  they 
sold  him,  Gen.  xxxvii,  32  ;  and  of  the  same  sort 
were  the  gowns  which  kings'  daughters  wore  in 
the  time  of  David.     2  Sam.  xiii,  18. 

The  ornaments  of  their  habits  were  fringes 
or  borders  of  purple  or  embroidery,  and  clasps 
of  gold  or  precious  stones,  where  they  were  ne- 
cessary. Greatness  consisted  in  changing 
dress  often,  and  wearing  only  such  clothes  as 
were  thoroughly  clean  and  whole.  Besides, 
nobody  will  doubt  that  the  Israelites  went  very 
plain  in  their  dress,  if  we  consider  how  remark- 
able  the  Greeks  and  Romans  were  for  it  even 
in  the  time  of  their  greatest  luxury.  We  see 
it  in  ancient  statues,  Trajan's  pillar,  and  other 
pieces  of  sculpture. 

The  garments  commonly  mentioned  in 
Scripture  are  the  tunic  and  mantle :  and  the 
Greek  and  Roman  dress  consisted  of  these  two 
only.     (See  the  note  on  p.    75.)     The  tunic 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  81 

was  made  wide,  to  leave  freedom  of  motion  at 
work :  they  loosed  it  when  they  were  unem- 
ployed ;  but  in  travelling  or  at  work  they  tied 
it  up  with  a  girdle.  Thence  comes  the  phrase 
so  frequent  in  Scripture,  Arise,  gird  up  thy 
loins,  and  do  this.  The  Israelites  were  ordered 
to  wear  ribands  of  blue  on  the  borders  of  their 
garments,  to  make  them  continually  mindful  of 
the  law  of  God.  Num.  xv.  38.  They  had 
the  head  covered  with  a  sort  of  tiara  like 
that  of  the  Persians  and  Chaldeans,  for  it  was 
a  sign  of  mourning  to  go  bareheaded  :  and 
they  wore  their  own  hair,  for  to  be  shaved  was 
another  mark  of  affliction.  As  to  the  beard, 
it  is  very  certain  they  wore  it  long,  by  the  in- 
stance of  the  ambassadors  that  David  sent  to 
the  king  of  the  Ammonites,  half  of  whose 
beards  that  ill  advised  prince  shaved  off  to 
affront  them,  2  Sam.  x,  4  ;  so  that  they  were 
forced  to  stay  some  time  at  Jericho  to  let  their 
beards  grow  again,  before  they  could  have  the 
face  to  show  themselves  :  he  also  caused  their 
clothes  to  be  cut  off  in  the  middle,  and  in  such 
a  manner  as  shows  they  wore  them  very  long. 
They  bathed  frequently,  as  is  still  the  custom 
in  hot  countries,  and  washed  their  feet  still 
oftener  ;  because,  wearing  nothing  but  sandals, 
they  could  not  walk  without  gathering  much 
dust.  Thence  it  comes  that  the  Scripture 
speaks  so  much  of  washing  the  feet  at  first 
coming  into  a  house,  at  sitting  down  to 
victuals,  and  going  to  bed.  Now,  because 
water  dries  the  skin  and  hair,  thev  anointed 

6 


82  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

themselves,  either  with  plain  oil,  or  such  as  had 
aromatic  spices  infused  in  it,  which  was  com- 
monly called  ointment.  This  custom  still  pre- 
vails in  the  East  Indies. 

We  see  in  several  parts  of  the  Scripture 
after  what  manner  the  women  dressed  and 
adorned  themselves.  God,  reproaching  Jeru- 
salem with  her  breaches  of  faith,  under  the 
figure  of  a  husband,  who  has  brought  his  wife 
out  of  the  greatest  misery  to  heap  blessings 
upon  her,  says,  by  the  Prophet  Ezekiel,  that 
he  has  given  her  very  fine  stuffs,  and  of  differ- 
ent colours,  a  silken  girdle,  purple  shoes, 
bracelets,  a  necklace,  earrings,  Ezek.  xvi,  10, 
11,  &c,  and  a  crown  or  rather  mitre,*  such  as 
the  Syrian  women  used  a  great  while  after ; 
that  he  adorned  her  with  gold  and  silver,  and 
the  most  costly  raiment.  When  Judith 
dressed  herself  to  go  to  Holoferncs,  it  is  said 
that  she  washed  and  anointed  herself,  that  she 
braided  her  hair,  and  put  attire  upon  her 
head  ;  that  she  put  on  her  garments  of  glad- 
ness, with  sandals  upon  her  feet,  and  adorned 
herself  with  bracelets,  earrings,  and  rings  upon 
her  fingers.     Judith  x}  3,  &c.     In  a  word,  wc 

*  Ite,  qnibns  grata  est  picta  lupa  barbara  mitra. 

Juv.  Sat.  iii,  v.  66. 

The  barbarous  harlots  crowd  the  public  place; 
Go,  fools,  and  purchase  an  unclean  embrace  ; 
The  painted  mitre  court,  and  the  more  painted  face. 

Dryden. 

Mitres,  variously  painted  and  ornamented,  are  stil- 
used  bv  the  women  of  the  east. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES,  83 

cannot  desire  a  more  particular  account  of 
these  female  ornaments  than  what  we  read  in 
Isaiah  when  he  reproaches  the  daughters  of 
Sion  with  their  vanity  and  luxury,  Isaiah  iii, 
16,  &c  ;  for  corruption  was  then  got  to  the 
highest  pitch. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
Their  Houses  and  Furniture. 
There  was  occasion  for  much  less  furniture 
in  those  hot  countries  than  in  ours  ;  ancf  their 
plainness  in  all  other  respects  gives  us  reason 
to  think  they  had  but  little.  The  law  often 
speaks  of  wooden  and  earthen  vessels ;  and 
earthen  ware  was  very  common  among  the 
Greeks  and  Romans,  before  luxury  had  crept 
in  among  them.  They  are  mentioned  among 
the  things  that  were  brought  for  the  refreshment 
of  David,  during  the  war  with  Absalom.  2 
Sam.  xvii,  28.  We  see  the  furniture  that  was- 
thought  necessary,  in  the  words  of  the  Shunam- 
ite  woman  who  lodged  the  Prophet  Elisha  : 
Let  us  make  (said  she  to  her  husband)  a  Utile 
chamber  for  the  man  of  God,  and  set  for  him 
there  a  bed,  a  table,  a  stool,  and  a  candlestick. 
2  Kings  iv,  10.  Their  beds  were  no  more 
than  couches  without  curtains,  except  they 
were  such  light  coverings  as  the  Greeks  called 
canopies,*  because  they  served  to  keep  off  the 

*  Konopcion  from  Kowwtt^,  a  gnat. 


84  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

gnats.  The  great  people  had  ivory  bedsteads, 
Amos  vi,  4,  as  the  Prophet  Amos  reproaches 
the  wealthy  in  his  time ;  and  they  that  were 
must  delicate  made  their  beds  very  soft,  decked 
them  with  rich  stuffs,  and  sprinkled  them  with 
odoriferous  waters.  Prov.  vii,  16,  17.  They 
placed  the  beds  against  the  wall ;  for  it  is  said, 
when  Hezekiah  was  threatened  that  he  should 
die  soon,  he  turned  his  face  to  the  wall  to  weep. 
2  Kings  xx,  2. 

The  candlestick  mentioned  among  Elisha's 
furniture 'was,  probably,  one  of  those  great  ones 
that  were  set  upon  the  ground  to  hold  one 
or  more  lamps.*  Till  then,  and  a  long  while 
after,  even  in  the  time  of  the  Romans,  they 
burned  nothing  but  oil  to  give  light.  Thence  it 
is  so  common  in  Scripture  to  call  every  thing 
that  enlightens  the  body  or  mind,  whatever 
guides  or  refreshes,  by  the  name  of  lamp. 
There  is  not  much  reason  to  think  they  had 
tapestry  in  their  houses.  They  have  occasion 
for  little  in  hot  countries,  because  bare  walls 
are   cooler.     They  make  use  only  of  carpels 

*  I  have  now  before  me  a  cast  frdm  a  lamp  brought 
by  ,Mr.  Jackson  (author  oi*  A  Journal  from  India 
over  Land,  &c,  8vo,  Lond.  1799,)  from  the  ruins  of 
Herculaneum ;  it.  is  circular,  twenty-two  inches  in 
diameter,  and  contains  places  for  twelve  lights.  The 
oil  is  put  into  a  large  cavity  in  the  centre,  which  is 
covered  with  a  lid,  and  with  this  cavity  all  the  wick 
places  communicate,  li  is  finely  ornamented  on  the 
top,  with  the  thyrses  and  marks  alternately  p] 
As  there  are  no  ornaments  on  the  under  side,  it  i 
dently  one  of  that  kind  mentioned  above,  which  stood 
upon  a  table,  or  was  placed  on  the  ground. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  85 

to  sit  and  lie  upon,  and  Ezekiel  speaks  of  them 
among  the  merchandise  which  the  Arabians 
brought  to  Tyre.  Ezek.  xxvii,  21.  They  are 
also  mentioned  among  the  tilings  provided  for 
David's  refreshment,  which  would  incline  one 
to  think  the  Israelites  used  them  in  camp,  for 
in  houses  they  had  chaii 

Their  houses  differed  from  ours  in  all  that 
we  see  still  in  hot  countries.  Their  roofs  are 
flat — the  windows  closed  with  lattices  or  cur- 
tains ;  they  have  no  chimneys,  and  lie  for  the 
most  part  on  a  ground  floor. 

We  have  a  great  many  proofs  in  Scripture 
that  roofs  were  flat  in  and  about  the  land  of 
[srael.  Rahab  hid  the  spies  of  Joshua  upon 
the  roof  of  the  house.  Joshua  ii,  G.  \\  hen 
Samuel  acquainted  Saul  that  God  had  chosen 
him  to  be  king,  he  made  him  lie  all  night  upon 
the  roof  of  the  house,  which  is  still  usual  in  hot 
countries.  1  Sam.  ix,  25.  David  was  walking 
upon  the  roof  of  his  palace,  when  he  saw  Bath- 
sheba  bathing.  2  Sam.  xi,  2.  When  Absalom 
had  rebelled  against  his  father,  he  caused  a  tent 
to  be  raised  upon  the  roof  of  the  same  palace 
where  he  lay  with  his  father's  concubines. 
2  Sam.  xvi,  22.  This  action  was  in  a  manner 
taking  possession  of  the  kingdom,  and  was  made 
public  to  show  that  he  was  determined  never  to 
return  to  his  duty.  They  ran  to  the  tops  of 
their  houses  upon  great  alarms, as  is  plain  from 

*  2  Sam.   xvii.   23,  where    they  are    termed  beds 
or  couches. 


86  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

two  passages  in  Isaiah  xv,  3,  and  xxi,  1.  All 
this  shows  the  reason  of  the  law  that  ordered  a 
battlement  to  be  raised  quite  around  the  root', 
lest  any  body  should  fall  down  and  be  killed, 
Deut.  xxii,  8,  and  explains  the  expression  in 
the  gospel,  What  you  have  heard  in  the  ear, 
jmblish  on  the  house  tops.  Every  house  was  a 
scaffold  ready  built  for  any  one  that  had  a  mind 
to  make  himself  heard  at  a  distance. 

The  casements  of  windows  are  taken  notice 
of  in  the  Proverbs,  vii,  6  ;  the  Song  of  Solomon, 
ii,  9,  and  the  story  of  the  death  of  Ahaziah, 
kin";  of  Israel,  2  Kings  i,  2. 

When  King  Jehoiakim  burned  the  book  which 
Jeremiah  had  written  by  the  order  of  God,  he 
was  sitting  in  his  winter  house  with  a  tire  on 
the  hearth  burning  before  him.  Jer.  xxxvi.  22. 
Whence  one  may  judge  they  had  no  chimney  - ; 

*  The  lire  which  ihe  long  had  before  him  i-  sup- 
posed to  have  been  in  a  movable  stove,  whence  the 
Vulgate  translates  i'    arula  coram  ■  i  mrvmis ; 

and  therefore  had  no  fixed  chimney  to  it.     And  thai 
the  ancients  had  none,  has  been  asserted  by 
ihe  learned,  particularly  by  Manutius,  in  Cic.  Fam. 
1.  vii.  Ep.  x,  and  Lipsius.  Ep.  ad  Belgas,  iii.  7.').  and 
tint  the  smoke  wen'   out  at  the  windows,    or  at   the 
tops  of  the  houses.    Cato(de  Re.  Rust.  c.  xviii 
focum  pvniin    cirevmversum,    priusijuam    ciibitu 
'habeat.     The  hearth  could  uct  be  swept  around,  If  it 
was,   as    with  us,  built    in  a  chimney.     Columella, 
1.  xi,  c.  ult.,  speaks  of  the  smoke  adhei  in::  to  the  ceil- 
ings over  the  hearth:  Put  pMjocos  teelis  in- 
t,  coUigi  debet.     Sene  escribe*  stove 
tubes,  then  lately  invented,  placed  around  the  walls  of 
the  rooms,  to  throw  an  equal  warmth  into  them.     I  »n 
the  other  hand,  Dan.  Barbaras,  in  his  comment  on 


MANNERS    OF   TIIH    ISRAELITES.  87 

which  indeed  are  the  invention  of  cold  coun- 
try s.  In  hot  climates  they  were  satisfied  with 
■tores  for  the  kitchen •  They  made  use  of  stone 
in  building,  especially  at  Jerusalem,  where  it 
was  very  common,  and  they  knew  how  to  cat 
it  into  very  large  pieces.  There  is  mention 
made,  in  Solomon's  buildings,  of  stones  eight  or 
ten  cubits  long,  that  i«,  twelve  or  fifteen  feet : 
and  those  called  costly  stones  are  doubtless  dif- 
ferent sorts  of  marble.      1  Kings  vii,  9,  10. 

The  beauty  of  their  buildings  consisted  less 
in  ornaments  placed  in  certain  parts  than  in 
the  whole  model  ;  in  cutting  and  joining  the 
stones,  they  took  care  to  have  all  even  and 
Well  dressed  by  the  level  and  square.  This  is 
what  Homer  says  of  the  building  he  commends, 
and  this  sort  of  beauty  is  still  admired  in  the 

Vitrarins,  and  Ferrarins,    i,  9,  maintain  that   they 
often  had  chimneys:  but  only  in  the  apper  rooms,  in 
which   La  a  reason  why  no  remains  of 
them   are   found,  the   high  ies  firsl  falling  to 

ruin.  Aristophat  \  ■:■  h  2,  8,  Introduces  an  old 
man,  shut  up  by  his  son,  endeavouring  to  escape  np 
the  chimney.  Herodot.  vii,  p.  578,  579,  mentions  the 
sun  shining  upon  the  .hearth  down  the  chimney  :  and 
Appian,  B.  C.  civ,  says,  Some  of  the  proscribed  hid 
themselves  injakes,  some  in  wells,  some  in  chimneys. 
The  reader  may  see  more  in  the  above  cited  authors. 
E.  F. 

*  Josephus  says  that  the  stones  with  which  the  tem- 
ple was  built,  "  were  white  and  strong,  fifty,  feet  long, 
twenty-four  broad,  and  sixteen  in  thickness."  (Antiq. 
b.  xv,  c.  xi.)  Our  Lord's  disciples  are  represented  as 
struck  with  wonder  at  seeing  such  immense  masses 
wrought  up  in  the  walls  of  the  temple.  Mark 
xiii.   1. 


88  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

ancient  Egyptian  edifices.  The  Israelites  made 
use  of  fragrant  woods,  as  cedar  and  cypress,  to 
wainscot  the  inside  of  the  most  pompous  build- 
ings,  and  out  of  these  they  made  the  ceiling  and 
pillars.  2  Sam.  v,  11.  This  was  used  in  the 
temple,  and  Solomon's  palaces,  Song  of  Sol. 
iii,  6  :  and  David  says  that  he  dwells  in  a  house 
of  cedar,  2  Sam.  vii,  2,  to  express  the  magnifi- 
cence of  his  apartments. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
Their  Diet. 

As  to  what  regards  the  table,  the  Israelites 
ate  sitting,  as  the  Greeks  did  in  Homer's  time: 
and  it  is  necessary  to  take  notice  of  it,  to  dis- 
tinguish one  period  from  another.  For  after- 
ward, that  is  to  say,  from  the  reign  of  the  Per- 
sians, they  ate  lying  upon  beds,  Esther  i,  6,  7, 
8,  as  the  Persians  and  other  eastern  people  did, 
from  whom  the  Romans  also  took  the  custom. 
Regular  people  did  not  eat  till  after  their  work, 
and  pretty  late.  Wherefore,  eating  and  drink- 
ing early  in  the  morning  signify  intemperance 
and  debauchery  in  Scripture.  Isa.  v,  11.  Their 
food  was  plain.  They  commonly  mention  only 
eating  bread  and  drinking  water  ;  which  is  the 
reason  that  the  word  bread  is  generally  taken 
in  Scripture  for  all  sorts  of  victuals.  They 
broke  their  bread  without  cutting  it,  because 
they  made  use  of  none  but  small,  long  taper 


MANNERS    OF    TUT-    ISRAELITES.  89 

rolls,  (is  is  still  done  in  several  countries.*  The 
first  favour  that  Boaz  showed  Ruth,  was  to  let 
her  drink  of  the  same  water  with  his  young 
men,  and  come  and  eat  with  them,  and  dip  her 
morsel  in  the  vinegar,  Ruth  ii,  9,  14  ;  and  wo 
see.  by  the  compliments  she  made  in  return, 
that  this  was  no  small  favour. 

Wo  may  judge  of  their  most  common  provi- 
sions by  the  rofreshment  David  receivod  at  dif- 
ferent times  from  Abigail,  Ziba,  and  Barzillai, 
and  by  what  was  brought  to  him  at  Hebron. 
1  Sam.  xxv,  18  ;  2  Sam.  xvi,  1  ;  xvii.29.  The 
sorts  there  mentioned  are  bread  and  wine,  wheal 
and  barley,  flour  of  both,  beans,  lent.ilrs.  parehed 
earn,  raisins,  dried fig*%  honey,  huiier,  od.shnp, 
oxen,  and  fat  calves.  There  is  in  this  account 
a  great  deal  of  com  and  pulse,  which  was  also 
the  most  common  food  of  the  ancient  Egyp- 
tians, and  of  the  Romans  in  the  best  times, 
when  they  gave  themselves  most  to  husbandry. 
Hence  came  the  illustrious  names  of  Fabius, 
Piso,  Cicero,  and  Lrntulus.\  The  advice  of 
the  wise  man  shows  the  use  the  Israelites  made 
of  milk.      Take  care,  (says  he,)  that  thou  have 

*  Or  rather  thin  crisp  perforated  cakes,  called  in 
Scripture  D'"lp]  nakudeqm,  such  as  the  Jews  fre- 
quently make  to  the  present  day.  and  which  are  still 
common  in  the  east. 

t  Clem.  Alex.  2  Paedag.  I.  in  sine.  See  also  Plin. 
Hist.  Nat.  lib.  xviii,  c,  3,  where  he  shows  that  the 
P/hnmu  were  so  called  for  having  invented  the  pestle, 
the  Pisoties  from  poinding  the  corn:  the  Fabii, 
{ '/'■■rones,  and  Lentvli  from  their  delighting  to  sow  and 
rear  beans,  vetches  and  lentiles. 


90  .MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

goat's  milk  enough  for  thy  food,  for  the  food  of 
thy  houseJiold,  and  for  maintenance  to  thy  maid- 
ens.     Prov.  xxvii,  27. 

Though  it  was  lawful  to  eat  fish,  I  do  not 
find  that  it  is  mentioned  till  the  later  tim^s. 
It  is  believed  the  ancients  despised  it  as  too 
dainty  and  light  food  for  robust  men.  (Plato, 
Rep.  iii.)  Neither  does  Homer  speak  of  it,  or 
the  Greeks,  in  what  they  write  relating  to  the 
heroic  times.  We  hear  but  little  of  sauces, 
or  high. seasoned  dishes  among  the  Hebrews. 
Their  feasts  consisted  of  substantial,  well-fed 
meat :  and  they  reckoned  milk  and  honey  their 
greatest  dainties.  Indeed,  before  ."sugar  was 
brought  from  (he  Indies,  there  was  nothing 
known  more  agreeable  to  the  taste  than  honev. 
They  preserved  fruits  in  it, and  mixed  it  in  the 
nicest  pastry.  Instead  of  milk,  they  often  men- 
tion butter,  that  is,  cream,  which  is  the  fine  t 
part  of  it.  The  offerings  prescribed  by  the  law 
show  that,  ever  since  the  time  of  Moses,  they 
had  di viM-s  softs  of  pastry.  Lev.  ii,  4,  5,  &c, 
some  kneaded  with  oil,  others  without  it. 

And  here  we  must  not  omit  the  distinction 
of  meats  allowed  or  forbidden  by  the  law.  It 
was  not  peculiar  to  the  Hebrews  to  abstain 
from  certain  animals  out  of  a  religious  prin- 
ciple ;  the  neighbouring  people  did  th<-  same. 
Neither  the  Syrians  nor  Egyptians  ate  any 
fish  ;  and  some  have  thought  it  was  supersti- 
tion that  made  the  ancient  Greeks  not  eat  it. 
The  Egyptians  of  Thebes  would  eat  no  mutton, 
because  they   worshipped   Amm  on    under  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITE*.  91 

shape  of  a  ram  ;  (Herod,  ii  ;)  but  they  killed 
goats.  In  Other  places  they  abstained  from 
goats'  flesh,  and  sacrificed  sheep.  The  Egyp- 
tian priests  used  no  meat  nor  drink  imported 
from  foreign  countries  :  (Porphyr.  Abstin.  iv  :) 
and,  as  to  the  product  of  their  own,  beside  fish, 
they  abstained  from  beasts  that  have  a  round 
foot  or  divided  into  several  toes,  or  that  have 
no  horns  ;  and  birds  that  live  upon  flesh.  Many 
would  eat  nothing  that  had  life  ;  and  in  the 
times  of  their  purification  they  would  not  touch 
so  much  as  eggs,  herbs,  or  garden  stuff.  None 
of  the  Egyptians  would  eat  beans.  (Herod,  ii.) 
They  accounted  swine  Bade*!  :  whoever  touch- 
ed one,  though  in  passing  l>\ .  i  himself  and 
his  clothes.  Socrates,  in  his  Commonwealth, 
reckons  eating  swine's  ilesh  among  the  super- 
fluous tilings  introduced  by  luxury.  (Plato  ii, 
Rep.)  Indeed,  they  are  of  no  use  but  for  the 
table.  Every  body  knows  that  the  Indian  Bra- 
mina  still  neither  eat  nor  kill  any  sort  of  ani- 
mal, and  it  is  certain  they  have  not  done  it  for 
more  than  two  thousand  years* 

The  law  of  Moses  then  had  nothing  new  or 
extraordinary  in  this  point  :  the  design  of  it 
was  to  keep  the  people  within  reasonable  bounds, 
and  to  prevent  their  imitating;  the  superstitions 
ot"  some  other  nations,  without  leaving  them 
quite  at  liberty,  of  which  they  might  have  made 
a  bad  use.  For  this  abstinence  from  particular 
sorts  of  meat  contributed  to  the  preservation 
both  of  their  health  and  morals.  It  was  not 
only  to  tame  their  untraceable  spirit  that  God 


92  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

imposed  this  yoke,  but  to  wean  them  from  things 
that  might  be  prejudicial.  (See  the  note  on 
page  16.)  They  were  forbidden  to  eat  blood 
or  fat, — both  are  hard  of  digestion, — and  though 
strong  working  people,  as  the  Israelites,  might 
find  less  inconvenience  from  it  than  others,  it 
was  better  to  provide  wholesome  food  for  them, 
since  it  was  a  matter  of  option.  Swine's  flesh 
lies  heavy  upon  the  stomach,  and  affords  a  very 
gross  species  of  nutriment :  so  do  fish  that  have 
no  scales.  The  solid  part  is  fat  and  oily, 
whether  it  be  tender,  as  that  of  eels,  or  hard, 
as  that  of  tunny,  whale,  or  others  of  the  same 
kind.  Thus  we  may  easily  account  for  most 
of  these  things  being  forbidden,  as  Clemens 
Alexandrinus  has  observed.  (2  Paed.  1.  Cas- 
sian.  Inst.  5.) 

As  to  the  moral  reasons,  all  sensible  people 
have  ever  reckoned  gluttony  a  vice  that  ought 
principally  to  be  guarded  against  as  the  begin- 
ning of  most  others.  The  Socratic  philosophers 
strongly  recommended  temperance  ;  and  Plato 
despaired  of  reforming  the  manners  of  the  Sici- 
lians, so  long  as  they  ate  two  great  meals  a  day.* 

It  is  supposed  that  what  Pythagoras  aimed 
at  by  enjoining  abstinence  was  to  make  men 
just  and  disinterested,  in  using  themselves  to 
live  on  a  little.     Now,  one  of  the  chief  branches 

*  Plat.  Ep.  vii,  in  Init.  But,  had  he  lived  in  these 
latter  times,  how  great  must  his  astonishment  have 
been,  to  find  persons,  Christians,  professing  the  utmost 
purity  of  manners  and  elevation  of  mind,  feeding 
themselves  four,  yea,  six  or  seven  times  in  the  day  ! 


MANNERS    OF    TIIE     ISRAELITES.  93 

of  gluttony  is  a  desire  of  variety  of  dishes.  Too 
much  soon  palls;  but,  as  variety  is  infinite,  the 
desire  after  it  is  insatiable.  Tertullian  com- 
prehends  all  these  reasons  in  the  following  pas- 
sage : — "  If  the  law  takes  away  the  use  of  some 
sorts  of  meat,  and  pronounces  creatures  unclean 
that  were  formerly  held  quite  otherwise,  let  us 
consider  that  the  design  is  to  inure  them  to 
temperance;  and  look  upon  it  as  a  restraint 
laid  upon  gluttons,  who  hankered  after  the  cu- 
cumbers and  melons  of  Egypt  while  they  were 
eating  the  food  of  angels.  Let  us  consider  it 
too  as  a  remedy  at  the  same  time  against  ex- 
cess and  impurity,  the  usual  attendants  of  glut- 
tony. It  was  partly  likewise  to  extinguish  the 
love  of  money,  by  taking  away  the  pretence  of 
its  being  necessary  for  providing  of  sustenance. 
It  was,  finally,  to  enable  men  to  fast  with 
less  inconvenience  upon  religious  occasions,  by 
using  them  to  a  moderate  and  plain  diet." 
(Tertullian  adv.  Marc.  lib.  ii,  cap.  18,  in  fine.) 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Their  Purifications. 

The  purifications  prescribed  by  the  law  had 
the  same  foundation  as  the  distinction  of  meats. 
The  neighbouring  people  practised  some  of  the 
like  nature  :  among  others  the  Egyptians,  whose 
priests  shaved  off  all  their  hair  every  three 
days,  and  washed  their  bodies  all   over  twice 


94  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

in  the  night,  and  two  or  three  times  a.  day. 
(Herod.  1.  ii,  Porphyr.  de  Abstin.)  The  legal 
purifications  of  the  Israelites  were  of  advan- 
tage in  preserving  both  their  health  and  morals. 
The  cleanness  of  the  body  is  a  symbol  of  the 
purity  of  the  soul  :  which  is  the  reason  that 
some  devout  people  have  affected  to  be  dirty  to 
make  themselves  more  despicable,  and  to  show 
the  plainer,  by  their  outward  appearance,  the 
abhorrence  they  had  of  their  sins.  Thence, 
too,  external  purification  is  called  sancl'ijicathm, 
because  it  makes  those  observe,  at  least,  an  out- 
ward purity  who  draw  near  to  holy  things. 
Nay,  one  may  venture  to  say  that  cleanliness 
isa  natural  consequence  of  virtue  ;  since  filthi- 
ness,  for  the  most  part,  proceeds  only  from  sloth 
and  meanness  of  spirit.* 

Besides,  cleanliness  is  necessary  to  preserve 
health  and  prevent  sickness,  especially  in  hot 
countries:  accordingly  we  find  people  generally 
cleanlier  there.  Heat  inclines  them  to  strip 
themselves  to  bathe,  and  often  change  their 
clothes.  But  in  the  cold  countries  we  are 
afraid  both  of  the  air  and  water,  and  are  more 
benumbed  and  sluggish.  It  is  certain,  the  nas- 
tiness  in  which  most  of  our  lower  sort  of  people 
live,  especially  the  poorest  and  those  that  are 
in  towns,  either  causes  or  increases  many  dis- 

*  A  great  man  has  asserted  that  "  cleanliness  is 
next  to  godliness."  .And  we  generally  find  cleanli- 
ness practised  in  proportion  to  the  prevalence  of 
the  spirit  of  genuine  piety.  Christianity  disowns  the 
slothful  and  the  filthy,  as  well  as  the  dishonest  ami  tjie 
impure, 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  95 

tempers.  What  would  be  the  consequence  then 
in  hot  countries,  where  the  air  is  sooner  cor- 
rupted, and  the  water  more  scarce  ?  Besides, 
the  ancients  made  but  little  use  of  linen  ;  and 
woollen  is  not  so  easy  to  be  cleansed. 

Here  let  us  admire  the  wisdom  and  goodness 
of  God,  who  gave  his  people  laws  that  were 
useful  so  many  different  ways  :  for  they  served 
altogether  to  inure  them  to  obedience,  to  keep 
them  from  superstition,  to  improve  their  man- 
ners,  and  preserve  their  health.     Thus,  in  the 
formation  of  plants  and  animals,  we  see  many 
parts  serve  for  different  uses.     Now,  it  was  a 
matter  of  consequence  that  the  precepts  that 
enjoined  cleanliness  should  make  a  part  of  their 
religion  ;   for  as  they  related  to  what  was  done 
within  doors,  and  the  most  secret  actions  of 
life,  nothing  but  the  fear  of  God  could  keep  the 
people    from    transgressing    them.     Yet    God 
formed  their  conscience  by  these  sensible  things, 
and  made  it  familiar  to  them  to  own  that  nothing 
is  hidden  from  him,  and  that  it  is  not  sufficient  to 
be  pure  in  the  eyes  of  men  alone.     Tertullian 
understands  these  laws  so  when  he  says,  "  He 
has  prescribed  every  thing,  even  in  the  common 
transactions  of  life,  and  the  behaviour  of  men 
both  at  home  and  abroad,  so  Far  as  to  take  no- 
tice of  their  very  furniture  and  vessels  :  so  that 
meeting  every  where  the  precepts  of  the  law, 
they  might  not  be  one  moment  without  the  fear 
of  God  before  them."     And  afterward,  "  to  aid 
this  law,  which  was  rather  light  than  burden- 
some, the  same  goodness  of  God  also  instituted 


96  MANSERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

prophets,  who  taught  maxims  worthy  of  him. 
(In  Marc.  1.  ii,  c.  19.)  '  Wash  ye,  make  ye 
clean,  put  away  the  evil  of  your  doings  from 
before  mine  eyes,  fycS  '  Isa.  i,  16.  So  that 
the  people  were  sufficiently  instructed  in  the 
meaning  of  all  these  ceremonies  and  outward 
performances. 

This  is  the  foundation  of  those  laws  which 
order  bathing  and  washing  one's  clothes  after 
having  touched  a  dead  body,  or  unclean  crea- 
ture, and  upon  several  other  accidents.  Lev. 
xi,  24,  &c. ;  xiii,  58 ;  Numb,  xxxi,  23.  Thence 
comes  the  purifying  of  vessels  by  water  or  fire, 
and  of  houses  where  there  appeared  any  cor- 
ruption, and  of  women  after  child-bearing,  and 
the  separation  of  lepers  ;  Lev.  xiv,  48  ;  xii,  1, 
&c.  ;  xiii,  1,  &c.  ;  though  the  white  leprosy, 
which  is  the  only  sort  mentioned  in  Scripture, 
is  rather  a  deformity  than  an  infectious  disease. 
(Aug.  ii,  Qusest.  Evang.  40.) 

It  belonged  to  the  priests  to  separate  lepers, 
to  judge  of  other  legal:  impurities,  and  to  order 
the  manner  of  their  cleansing.  Thus  they 
practised  a  branch  of  physic  ;  and  though  phy- 
sicians are  sometimes  mentioned  in  Scripture, 
Gen.  1, 2  ;  2  Chron.  xvi,  12  ;  Job  xiii,  4  ;  Jer. 
viii,  22 ;  Isaiah  iii,  7,  it  is  probable  surgeons 
are  meant  :  for  the  ancients  made  no  distinc- 
tion between  these  two  professions.  The  law 
speaks  of  them  when  it  condemns  him  that 
hurts  another  to  pay  the  physician's  charges, 
Exod.  xxi,  19 :  and  in  other  places  we  read  of 
bandages,  plasters,  and  ointments,  Isa.  i,  6  ; 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  97 

Jer.  viii,  22;  xlvi,  11,  but  nowhere,  that  lean 
tell,  of  purges,  or  a  course  of  physic.  King 
Asa,  who  had  the  gout,  is  blamed  for  putting 
too  much  confidence  in  physicians.  2  Chron. 
xvi,  12.  Perhaps  the  Israelites  still  followed 
the  same  maxims  as  the  Greeks  of  the  heroic 
ages,  when  physicians,  as  Plato  iii,  Rep.  in- 
forms us,  applied  themselves  to  nothing  but 
healing  wounds  by  topical  remedies,  without 
prescribing  a  regimen  :  supposing  that  other 
illnesses  would  be  prevented  or  easily  got  over 
by  a  good  constitution,  and  the  prudent  ma- 
nagement of  the  sick.  As  for  wounds,  thev 
must  of  necessity  happen  sometimes  from  divers 
accidents,  even  in  the  course  of  hard  labour 
only. 

The  Israelites  avoided  conversing  with  stran- 
gers, and  it  was  a  consequence  of  those  laws 
that  enjoined  purifications  and  distinction  of 
meats.  For,  though  most  of  their  neighbours 
had  similar  customs,  they  were  not  altogether 
the  same.  Thus,  an  Israelite  had  always  a 
right  to  presume  that  any  stranger  he  met  with 
had  eaten  swine's  flesh,  or  the  sacrifices  offered 
to  idols,  or  had  touched  some  unclean  beast. 
Whence  it  came,  that  it  was  not  lawful  to  eat 
with  them,  nor  to  go  into  their  houses.  This 
distance  was  also  of  consequence  to  their  mo- 
rals, serving  as  a  fence  against  too  great  a 
familiarity  with  strangers,  which  is  always  per- 
nicious  to  the  generality,  and  which  was  still 
more  so  at  that  time  because  of  idolatry.  The 
Egyptians  were  strict  observers  of  this  maxim ; 


93  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  Scripture  takes  notice  that  they  would  not 
eat  with  the  Hebrews ;  Gen.  xliii,  32  ;  and 
Herodotus  says,  they  would  neither  salute  a 
Greek,  nor  make  use  of  his  knife  or  plate.* 
The  Mohammedans  have  several  customs  of  the 
same  nature  at  this  day  ;  but  the  Hindoos  have 
more,  and  observe  them  with  the  greatest  su. 
perstition.f 

They  did  not  keep  at  an  equal  distance  from 
all  sorts  of  strangers,  though  they  comprehended 
them  all  under  the  name  of  Goim  or  Gentiles. 
They  abhorred  all  idolaters,  especially  those 
that  were  not  circumcised :  for  they  were  not 
the  only  people  that  practised  circumcision  ; 
it  was  used  by  all  the  descendants  of  Abraham, 
as  the  Ishmaelites,  Midianites,  and  Idumeans  ; 
and  the  Ammonites  and  Moabites  that  were 
descended  from  Lot.  The  Egyptians  them- 
selves, though  their  original  was  in  no  case  the 
same  with  the  Hebrews,  looked  upon  circum- 
cision as  a  necessary  purification,  and  held 
those  unclean  that  were  not  circumcised.^    As 

*  Herod,  ii.  This  superstition  the  Egyptians  car- 
ried so  far  that  they  would  not  eat  the  flesh  even  of  a 
clean  animal,  that  had  been  cut  up  with  the  knife  of  a 
Greek. 

i  For  several  of  these  customs  see  the  supplementary 
chapter. 

t  Herod,  lib.  2,  p.  115,  edit.  Steph.  1592.  The 
same  author  says,  that  the  Colchians,  Egyptians,  and 
Ethiopians,  are  the  only  nations  in  the  world  who  have 
used  circumcision  from  the  remotest  period,  an7 
apxvc,  and  that  the  Phoenicians  and  the  Syrians  who 
inhabit  Palestine,  acknowledge  they  received  this 
from  the  Egyptians.    Ibid.  p.  143. 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISKAEXITES.  99 

for  the  Israelites,  they  bore  with  the  uncircum- 
cised  that  worshipped  the  true  God,  so  far  as  to 
let  them  dwell  in  their  land,  provided  they  ob- 
served the  laws  of  nature,  and  abstinence  from 
blood.  But  if  they  got  themselves  circumcised, 
they  were  reputed  children  of  Abraham,  and 
consequently  obliged  to  observe  the  whole  law 
of  Moses.  The  rabbins  call  these  last  proselytes 
of  justice ;  and  the  faithful  that  were  not  cir- 
cumcised they  call  proselytes  by  abode,  or  No- 
achides,  (Selden  de  Jure  Nat.)  as  being  obliged 
to  observe  no  precepts  but  those  that  God  gave 
to  Noah  when  he  came  out  of  the  ark.  In 
Solomon's  time  there  were  one  hundred  and 
fifty-three  thousand  six  hundred  proselytes  in 
the  land  of  Israel.     2  Chron.  ii,  17. 

The  strangers  that  the  Israelites  were  most 
of  all  obliged  to  avoid  were  the  nations  that  lay 
under  a  curse,  as  descended  from  Canaan,  whom 
God  had  commanded  them  to  root  out.  I  find 
none  but  them,  as  I  said  before,  with  whom  it 
was  not  lawful  to  marry.  Exod.  xxxiv,  16  ; 
Dout.   vii,   3.     Moses   married   a   Midianite.* 


*  If  our  author's  comment  be  right,  Dr.  Warburton 
is  mistaken  in  saying  Solomon  transgressed  a  law  of 
Moses,  when  he  married  Pharaoh's  daughter.  (Div. 
Leg.  book  iv,  sect.  v.  2d  edit.)  And  Dr.  Jortin  might 
less  admire  Theodoret's  parallel  between  Moses  and 
Christ,  in  that  the  former  married  an  Ethiopian  wo- 
man, and  the  latter  espoused  the  church  of  the  Gen- 
tiles. There  was  nothing  so  particular  in  the  mar- 
riage of  Moses:  and  if  there  had  been,  the  similitude, 
I  think,  would  have  been  closer  if  Moses  had  married 
two  wives,  for  the  Jews  were  the  first-fruits  of  the 


100  MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES. 

Boaz  is  commended  for  having  married  Ruth 
the  Moabite.  Absalom's  mother  was  the  king 
of  Geshur's  daughter.  2  Sam.  iii,  3.  Amasa 
was  the  son  of  an  Ishmaelite,  and  of  Abigail, 
David's  sister.  1  Chron.  ii,  17.  Solomon 
married  the  king  of  Egypt's  daughter,  soon 
after  he  came  to  the  crown,  and  at  the  time 
when  he  was  most  in  God's  favour  :  1  Kings 
iii,  1  :  therefore  what  the  Scripture  afterward 
says,  to  blame  his  marrying  with  strange  women, 
must  be  understood  of  the  Canaanitish  woman 
whom  he  married,  and  that,  instead  of  endea- 
vouring to  convert  them,  he  paid  them  such  a 
criminal  complaisance  as  to  worship  their  idols. 
1  Kings  xi,  1. 

Much  more  were  marriages  free  among  the 
Israelites  ;  and  it  was  not  necessary  for  every 
one  to  marry  in  his  own  tribe,  as  many,  even 
of  the  fathers  of  the  church,  have  thought. 
This  law  was  peculiar  to  heiresses,  that  inhe- 
ritances might  not  be  confounded. j-     Besides, 

gospel.  (See  Dr.  Jortin's  Remarks  on  Ecclcs.  Hist. 
vol.  i,  p.  209.)  E.  P. 

*  Heiresses  were  obliged  to  marry  not  only  within 
their  own  tribe,  but  within  their  own  family.  Num. 
xxxvi,  6.  Let  them  marry  to  whom  they  think  best,  only 
to  the  family  of  the  tribe  (or  house)  of  their  fathers 
shall  they  marnj.  And  that  the  Jews  so  understood 
the  law  appears  from  Judith  viii,  2;  Tobit  iii,  15. 
This  I  chose  to  observe,  because  a  late  ingenious 
writer,  who  would  seem  to  have  examined  this  point, 
says,  It  docs  not  appear  that  there  was  any  other  obliga- 
tion even  upon  heiresses  than  to  marry  only  within  their 
own  tribe.  (Dr.  Middleton's  reflections  on  the  in- 
consistencies which  are  found  in  the  four  Evangelists, 


MANNERS    01     THE    ISRAELITES.  101 

David  married  Michal,  the  daughter  of  Saul, 
of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  :  and  another  of  his 
wives  was  Ahinoam  of  Jezreel,  a  city  of  the 
tribe  of  Ephraim.     2  Sam.  iii,  2. 


SETTLEMENT  TO   CHAPTER   IX. 

On  the  Purifications  of  the  Hindoos  and  Mohammed- 
ans.    Referred  to  p.  98. 

Purifications  among  the  Hindoos  make  an 
essential  part  of  religion.  Several  of  those  at 
present  in  use  among  this  people  are  dictated 
by  common  sense  and  expediency,  but  the  far 
greater  part  are  the  issue  of  the  grossest  super- 
stition. In  this  latter  class  are  found  many 
that  are  absurd,  nugatory,  and  ridiculous.  The 
following,  which  I  have  extracted  from  the 
Ayeen  Akbery,  will  exhibit  a  satisfactory  view 
of  this  subject. 

The  soul,  say  the  Hindoo  sages,  is  purified 
by  knowledge  and  religious  worship.  A  drunk- 
ard  is  purified  by  melted  glass.  When  the  body 
is  defiled  by  any  impurity  that  proceeds  from 
itself,  it  is  purified  by  earth  and  water,  and  by 
washing  the  teeth  and  eyes.     Water  that  has 

in  his  works,  8vo.,  vol.  ii,  p.  309.)  Not  only  the 
words  of  the  law,  and  the  practice  of  the  Jews,  but 
Grotius.  and  the  other  commentators  which  he  had 
before  him,  expressly  taught  him  otherwise.  (See 
likewise  Kidder's  Dem.  of  the  Messiah,  part  ii, 
p.  41G-417,  where  the  reader,  if  he  pleases,  may  find 
three  or  four  other  of  the  doctor's  assertions  fully  con- 
futed.) E.  F. 


102  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

been  defiled  by  the  shadow  of  an  impure  person 
is   purified   by  sunshine,  moonshine,   or  wind. 
If  any  filth  falls  from  an   animal  into   a  well, 
they  must  draw  out  sixty  jars  of  water ;  and 
if  the  same  accident  happen  to   a  pond,   they 
must  take  out  one  hundred  jars.     If  any  filth 
falls  into  oil,  it  must  be  boiled.     Cotton,  molas- 
ses, or   grain,  after   separating  whatever  had 
defiled  it,  must  be  sprinkled  with  water.     Gold, 
silver,   stone,   vegetables,   silk,    and    whatever 
grows  in  the  earth,  are  purified  by  being  washed 
in  water.     If  they  have  been  defiled  by  unclean 
oil,  they  must  be  washed  in  hot  water.    Wooden 
vessels,  if  touched  by  an  impure  person,  cannot 
be  purified  by  any   means.     But   if  they  are 
touched   by  another   unclean   thing,   or  by  a 
Sooder  (one  of  the  inferior  Hindoo  castes)  they 
may  be  purified  by  scraping.     The  same  rule 
is  to  be  observed  of  bone  or  horn.     Any  stone 
Vessel  that  has  been  defiled,  after  being  washed, 
must   be  buried  for   seven  days.     A  sieve,   or 
pestle  and  mortar,  is  purified  by  being  sprinkled 
with  water.     An  earthen  vessel   is  purified  by 
being  heated  in  the  fire.    The  earth  is  cleansed 
by  sweeping,  or  by  washing,  or  by  lighting  a 
fire  upon  it ;  or  if  a  cow  lies  down  upon  it  or 
walks  over  it,  or  in  time  it  will    purify  itself. 
If  a  cow  touches  any  food  with  her  mouth,  or 
a  hair,  a  fly,  or  any  other  insect  falls  therein, 
it  is  purified  by  ashes  or  water.    If  it  is  defiled 
by  any  filth  falling  off  the  body  of  the  person 
who  is  eating,  he  must  wash  it  with  water,  or 
scour  it  with  earth  till  it  is  perfectly  clean.    If 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  103 

a  man  defile  himself  in  the  upper  parts  of  the 
body,  excepting  the  hands,  lie  must  scour  him- 
self with  earth,  and  bathe.  If  he  defiles  him- 
self in  the  lower  parts,  he  is  purified  by  wash- 
ing the  parts.  If  he  is  defiled  by  drinking  wine, 
or  by  having  connection  with  an  impure  woman, 
or  by  any  human  excrement,  he  is  purified  by 
washing,  scouring  with  earth,  and  by  washing 
again,  if  below  the  navel ;  but  if  it  happens 
above  the  navel,  then  after  the  second  washing, 
he  must  anoint  the  parts  with  ghee,  (clarified 
butter,)  cow's  milk  and  curds,  and  cow's  dung 
and  urine,  and  he  must  also  drink  three  hand- 
fuls  of  river  water.  If  he  is  defiled  by  the 
touch  of  a  washerman,  or  a  dealer  in  leather, 
or  an  executioner,  or  a  hunter,  or  a  fisherman, 
or  an  oilman,  or  a  tame  dog,  he  is  purified  by 
water  alone.  But  if  he  touch  an  unclean  woman, 
a  sweeper,  a  sinner,  a  corpse,  a  dog,  ass,  cat, 
crow,  cock,  or  hen,  or  a  mouse,  or  a  camel,  or  is 
defiled  by  the  smoke  of  a  corpse  that  is  burn- 
ing, or  by  the  dust  shaken  off  an  ass,  dog, 
sheep,  or  goat,  he  must  go  into  the  water  with 
his  clothes  on,  look  at  the  sun,  and  repeat  some 
particular  prayers.  If  he  touches  human  fat 
or  bone,  he  must  bathe  with  his  clothes  on, 
or  drink  three  handfuls  of  water,  or  look  at 
the  sun,  or  put  his  hand  upon  a  cow.  If  he  is 
soiled  with  the  blood  of  clean  animals,  he  is 
pur  fled  bv  scouring  himself  with  earth  and 
water.  If  a  garment  of  wool  or  silk  is  pol- 
luted by  such  things  as  would  require  a  man, 
if  touched,    to    bathe,   it    is    purified    by  the 


104  MANNERS   OF   THE   ISRAELITES. 

wind  or  sunshine.  (Ayeen  Akbery,  v.  iii,  p. 
243.) 

Is  it  not  reasonable  to  suppose  that,  if  that 
pure  and  rational  system  of  salvation,  laid  down 
in  the  Christian  Scriptures,  were  fairly  pro- 
posed to  a  people  groaning  under  such  burden- 
some and  useless  rites,  it  would  be  most  joyfully 
received  ?  But,  alas  !  so  perverted  is  the  soul 
of  man,  that  he  would  rather  "  spend  his  money 
for  that  which  is  not  bread,  and  his  labour  for 
that  which  satisfieth  not,"  than  receive  the  sal- 
vation of  God  "  without  money  and  without 
price." 

Among  the  Mohammedans  purification  is 
considered  as  essential  to  devotion,  and  the  key 
of  prayer,  without  which  it  is  of  no  effect.  It 
is  of  two  descriptions,  the  ghossc  or  complete 
ablution  of  the  whole  body  ;  and  the  wazoo  or 
washing  of  the  hands  and  i'ect  on  particular 
occasions,  and  after  a  particular  manner.  In 
many  respects  the  purifications  among  the  Mo- 
hammedans are  similar  to  those  among  the 
Jews.  Indeed  Mohammed  copied  many  from 
the  Jewish  Scriptures,  of  which  he  made  a 
pretty  extensive  use  in  composing  his  Koran. 
(See  the  Hedaya  Prel.  Disc.  p.  liii.) 


CHAPTER  X. 

Their  Women  and  Marriages. 

From  the  manner   in  which   the  Israelites 
lived,  marriage  was  no  encumbrance  to  them  ; 


HAsatBMa  or  the  Israelites.  105 

it  was  rather  a  convenience,  for  which  it  was 
originally  designed.  The  women  were  labo- 
rious as  well  as  the  men,  and  wrought  in  the 
house  while  their  husbands  were  at  work  in  the 
field.*  They  dressed  the  victuals,  and  served 
them  up,  as  appears  from  Homer  and  several 
passages  in  Scripture.  When  Samuel  describes 
the  manners  of  the  kings  to  the  people,  he  says, 
Your  kings  will  take  your  daughters  to  be  eon- 
feet  loners,  and  to  be  cooks,  and  to  be  bakers, 
1  Sam.  viii,  13.  The  pretence  which  Amnon 
the  son  of  David  made  use  of  to  get  his  sister 
Tamar  near  him  when  he  debauched  her,  was 
that  he  might  cat  meat  at  her  hands,  2  Sam. 
xiii,  G,  which  she  dressed  herself  notwithstand- 
ing she  was  a  king's  daughter. 

The  women  made  wearing  apparel;  and  their 
common  employment  was  weaving  stuffs,  as 
making  cloth  and  tapestry  is  now.  We  sec 
in  Homer  the  instances  of  Penelope,  Calypso, 
and  Circe.  There  are  examples  of  it  in 
Theocritus,  Terence,  and  manv  other  authors. 
(Tiieoc.  Idyll.  15,  Ter.  Heaut.  Act.  ii,  Sc.  2.) 
But  what  appears  most  wonderful  to  me  is, 
that  this  custom  was  still  retained  at  Rome, 
among  the  greatest  ladies,  in  a  very  corrupt 
age  :  since  Augustus  commonly  wore  clothes 
of  his  wife's,  sister's,  and  daughter's  making. 
(Seut.  Aug.  73.)  For  a  proof  out  of  Scripture, 
it  is  said   that  Samuel's  mother   made  him   a 

*  We  learn  from  Herodotus,  lib.  ii,  p.  115,  edit. 
Steph.  15'J2,  that  the  Egyptian  women  were  treated  in 
the  same  way. 


106  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

little  coat,  which  she  brought  him  upon  festival 
days,  1  Sam.  ii,  19  ;  and  we  see  the  virtuous 
wife  in  the  Proverbs  seeking  wool  and  flax,  and 
laying  her  hands  to  the  spindle,  Prov.  xxxi,  13, 
and  19,  and  21,  and  giving  two  suits  of  clothes 
to  all  her  servants.* 

All  this  work  is  done  under  shelter,  and  in 
the  house,  and  does  not  require  great  strength 
of  body  :  for  which  reason  the  ancients  did  not 
think  them  fit  employments  for  men,  but  left 
them  to  the  women,  as  naturally  more  inclined 
to  stay  in  the  house,  and  neater,  and  fonder  of 
such  sorts  of  things.  And  this  is  probably  the 
reason  why  women  were  generally  doorkeepers, 
even  to  kings.  There  was  only  one  servant 
maid  at  the  gate  of  King  Ishbosheth,f  who  was 

*  Here  oar  author  follows  the  Vulgate,  which 
translates  Prov.  xxx,  21,  Omvcs  cnim  do/tu  slice  ejus 
lestitl  stmt  dvpllcibus ;  and  we,  for  all  her  household 
arc  clothed  with  scarlet)  and  in  the  margin,  or  double 
garments-  for  CUTtf  signifies  either.  E.  F.  But 
double  clothing  seems  to  be  chiefly  intended,  because 
the  clothing  referred  to  is  for  a  defence  from  the 
cold ;  in  which  case  scarlet  conld  avail  no  more  than 
any  other  colour ;  therefore  our  translation  is  evidently 
improper. 

1  Et  ostiaria  domus  purgans  triticum  obdormivit. 
2  Sam.  iv,  5.  The  reader  must  not  expect  to  find  this 
in  our  Bible,  because  the  Hebrew  has  it  not.  The 
Vulgate  took  it  from  the  Seventy.  However,  what 
our  author  asserts  is  notorious :  for  the  women 
spoken  of,  Exodus  xxxviii,  8,  were  probbly  door- 
keepers, as  well  as  those  who  assembled  at  the  door  of 
the   tabernacle   of  the  'lion.     1   Sam.    ii,   22. 

Athenaeus  says  the  keepers  of  the  king's  palace  in 
Persia  were  women,  1.  xii,  Deipnos.  c.  ii,  ana  Chardin 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  107 

busy  in  picking  corn.  And  David,  when  he 
fled  before  Absalom,  left  ten  women  who  were 
his  concubines  to  keep  his  palace.  2  Sam.  xv, 
16.  The  women  lived  separated  from  the  men, 
and  very  retired,  especially  widows.  Judith 
lived  in  this  manner,  shut  up  with  her  women 
in  an  apartment  upon  the  top  of  the  house, 
Judith  viii,  4,  5,  and  so  did  Penelope  in  Homer. 
(Odyss.  1.  i,  v.  328-330.) 

The  Israelites  made  great  feasts  and  rejoic 
ings  at  their  weddings.  They  were  so  dressed 
out  that  David  could  find  no  fitter  comparison 
to  describe  the  splendour  of  the  sun  by,  than 
that  of  a  bridegroom.  The  feast  lasted  seven 
days  ;  which  we  see  as  early  as  the  times  of 
the  patriarchs.  When  Jacob  complained  that 
they  had  given  him  Leah  for  Rachel,  Laban 
said  to  him,  Fulfil  the  week  of  the  marriage, 
Gen.  xxix,  27.  Samson,  having  married  a 
Philistine,  made  feasts  for  seven  days,  and  the 
seventh  day  the  feast  ended.  Judg.  xiv,  12* 
&c.  When  young  Tobias  had  a  mind  to  go 
home,  his  father-in-law  pressed  him  to  stay  two 
weeks,  doubling  the  usual  time,  because  they 
were  never  to  see  one  another  again.  Tobit 
viii,  20.  This  is  the  constant  tradition  of  the 
Jews,  and  their  practice  is  agreeable  to  it. 
(Cod.  Talm.  Pirke  Aboth,  cap.  xvi.)  Whoever 
thoroughly  studies  the  Song  of  Solomon,  will 
find   seven  days   plainly  pointed  out  to  repre- 

says  it.  was  so  lately-  And  the  damsel  thai  kept  the 
door  in  the  gospel,  John  xviii,  17,  everybody  remem- 
bers. E.  F. 


108  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

sent  the  first  week  of  his  marriage.     (Seld. 
Uxor  Heb.  ii,  c.  3.  Buxtorf.  Syn.  Jud.  c.  28.) 

We  see  in  the  same  Song  the  friends  of  the 
bridegroom  and  the'  companions  of  the  bride, 
who  were  always  at  the  feast.  Song  of  Sol. 
V,  1.  He  had  young  men  to  rejoice  with  him, 
and  she  young  women.  Judg.  xiv,  11.  In  the 
gospel  there  is  mention  made  of  the  bridegroom's 
friends,  and  of  the  virgins  who  went  forth  to 
meet  the  bride  and  bridegroom.  Matt,  ix,  15  ; 
xxv,  1,  &c.  He  wore  a  crown  in  token  of  joy, 
and  she  too,*  according  to  the  Jewish  tradition. 
They  were  conducted  with  instruments  of  mu- 
sic, and  their  company  carried  branches  of 
myrtle  and  palm  tree  in  their  hands.  (Pirke 
Aboth,  c.  xix.  Selden,  c.  xv.) 

As  for  any  thing  farther,  we  do  not  find  that 
their  marriages  were  attended  with  any  reli- 
gious ceremony,  except  the  prayers  of  the  father 
of  the  family,  and  the  standers  by,  to  entreat 
the  blessing  of  God.  We  have  examples  of  it 
in  the  marriage  of  Rebecca  with  Isaac,  Gen. 
xxiv,  60  ;  of  Ruth  with  Boaz,  Ruth  iv,  11  ;  and 
of  Sara  with  Tobias,  Tobit  vii,  13.  We  do 
not  see  that  there  were  any  sacrifices  offered 
upon  the  occasion  ;  or  that  they  went  to  the 
temple,  or  sent  for  the  priests  :  all  was  trans- 


*  Isaiah  lxi.  10.  The  Chaldee  paraph rast  renders 
it,  as  the  high  priest  is  adorned  with  his  resf?ncnts, 
that  is,  magnificently,  which  the  Vulgate  translates, 
quasi  sponsum  decoratum  corona,  and  the  Seventy  in  the 
same  manner:  and  them  our  author  follows,  accord^ 
ing  to  custom.  E.  F. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  109 

acted  between  the  relations  and  friends  :  so 
that  it  was  no  more  than  a  civil  contract. 

As  to  circumcision,  it  was  really  a  religious 
act,  and  absolutely  necessary,  at  that  time,  for 
all  that  would  enter  into  the  covenant  of  Abra- 
ham. (See  part  iv,  chap,  i.)  But  yet  it  was 
performed  in  private  houses,  without  the  mi- 
nistry of  priests  or  Levites.  If  anybody  of  a 
public  character  was  sent  for,  it  was  a  sort  of 
surgeon  used  to  the  operation,  whom  they  call 
jnohel ;  and  such  sort  of  people  the  Jews  have 
still. *  In  all  these  ceremonies  we  must  take 
care  not  to  be  imposed  upon  by  modern  pic- 
tures, as  I  said  about  clothes. 

The  Israelites  were  so  far  from  being  afraid 
of  plenty  of  children,  that  it  was  what  they 
wished  for.  Beside  their  natural  inclination, 
they  had  great  motives  to  it  from  the  law. 
They  knew  that  God,  when  he  created  the 
world,  and  repaired  it  after  the  deluge,  had 
said,  Increase  and  multiply  in  the  earth  ;  that 
he  had  promised  Abraham  a  numerous  poste- 
rity :  in  a  word,  that  from  among  them  was  to 
be  born  the  Saviour  of  the  world  ;  we  may  add  to 

*  Snr.)  mohel,  a  circumciser,  from  the  Chaldee 
Sm  mahal,  he  circumcised.  When  the  operator 
has  performed  the  act,  he  pronounces  the  following 
benediction  :  "  O  Lord  our  God,  the  God  of  our 
fathers,  strengthen  this  child,  and  preserve  him  to  his 
parents  ;  and  let  his  name  among  the  people  of  Israel 

be [here  the  name  is  first  given.]    Let  his  father 

rejoice  and  be  glad  for  that  which  is  descended  from 
his  loins;  and  let  his  mother  be  delighted  with  the 
fruit  of  her  womft" 


110  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

this,  that  they  were  not  influenced  by  those  sor- 
did  considerations  which  cause  the  blessing  of 
children  to  be  looked  on  in  the  present  day  as 
a  misfortune. 

By  reason  of  their  frugal  way  of  life,  they 
were  at  small  expense  in  feeding  them  while 
they  were  little  ;  and  less  in  clothing  them,  for 
in  those  hot  countries  they  often  let  them  go 
naked  ;  and  when  they  grew  up,  they  helped 
them  in  their  work,  and  saved  the  expense  of 
slaves  or  hired  servants  ;  and  indeed  they  had 
but  few  slaves  in  proportion  to  their  work. 
Ziba,  Saul's  servant,  ploughed  Mephibosheth's 
estate  with  his  fifteen  son3  and  twenty  ser- 
vants. 2  Sam.  ix,  10.  They  were  in  no  pain 
about  providing  for  their  children  ;  since  they 
had  no  fortunes  to  raise  for  them  :  all  their 
ambition  was  to  leave  their  children  the  inhe- 
ritance they  had  received  from  their  ancestors, 
better  cultivated  if  possible,  and  with  a  larger 
stock  upon  it.  As  for  the  daughters,  they  never 
inherited  but  in  default  of  male  issue,  Num. 
xxvii,  8  ;  they  were  sought  in  marriage  more 
upon  account  of  their  families  than  their  riches. 

It  was  therefore  a  convenience,  as  well  as 
an  honour,  to  have  a  great  many  children.  He 
was  esteemed  happy  who  saw  himself  father 
of  a  large  family,  Psa.  cxxvii,  3,  4,  0,  and  sur. 
rounded  with  a  great  number  of  children  and 
grandchildren,  always  ready  to  receive  his  in- 
structions and  execute  his  commands,  and  was 
under  no  apprehension  of  having  his  name  for- 
gotten while  his  posterity  subsisted.    Children's 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  Ill 

children  are  the  crown  of  old  ?nen,  (Prov.  xvii,  6,) 
6ays  the  Scripture  ;   and  when  it  takes  notice 
of  the  number   of  children,  it  is  commonly  in 
praise  of  their  parents  ;  as  those  two  jndges  of 
Israel,  one  of  whom  had  thirty  sons,   the  other 
forty,  and  thirty  grandsons,  Judg.  x,  4  ;  xii,  14  ; 
as  David,   nineteen  of  whose  sons  are  named, 
1  Chron.  iii,  1,  &c.,  beside  those  that  he  had 
by  his  concubines;  Rehoboam,  who  had  twenty, 
eight  sons  and   sixty  daughters,    2  Chron.   xi, 
21,   and  Abia,    who  had    twenty. two  sons  and 
sixteen  daughters.     2  Chron.  xiii,  21.     In  the 
same  manner   the  poets  make   mention  of  the 
fifty  sons  of  Priamus  ;   for  the  Greeks  had  no 
less  esteem  for  fruitfulness.      Virginity,  consi- 
dered as  a  virtue,  was  at  that  time  little  known, 
and  looked  upon  in  the  same  light  with  sterility, 
and    the    women    that    died    unmarried    were 
reckoned  unfortunate.     Electra,  in  Sophocles, 
bemoans  herself  expressly  upon  it,  and  this  was 
the   occasion   of   the    repining   of    Jephthah's 
daughter.     Judg.  xi,  31.      Hence,   barrenness 
came  to  be  a  reproach  to  married  women,  as 
we  see  by  Samuel's    mother  and    many  others. 
1  Sam.  i,   2-6.     This  misfortune  was   looked 
upon  as  a  curse  from  God. 

This  care  for  posterity  was  the  foundation 
of  the  law  that  enjoined  a  man  to  marry  his 
brother's  widow  when  he  died  without  children, 
(a  law  existing  in  the  patriarchal  times,  as  ap- 
pears by  the  story  of  Tamar,  Gen.  xxxviii,  8, 
and  looked  upon  as  a  duty,)  that  the  name  of 
the  deceased  might  not  be  forgotten ;  and  so 


112  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  children  were  reckoned  his  by  a  sort  of 
adoption.  From  hence  proceed  the  two  genea- 
logies of  Jesus  Christ ;  one  according  to  St. 
Matthew,  and  the  other  according  to  St. 
Luke.  Matt,  i  ;  Luke  iii.  For  thus  it  was 
found  that  Joseph  had  two  fathers,  one  by  whom 
he  was  begotten,  and  the  other  by  legal  adop- 
tion.* Besides,  the  marrying  a  sister-in-law 
was  not  contrary  to  the  first  law  of  nature, 
which  allowed  marrying  even  one's  own  sister 
before  God  forbade  it. 

It  was  the  desire  of  having  a  great  number 
of  children  that  induced  the  Israelites  to  take 
several  wives  at  a  time  ;  which  they  esteemed 
an  honour  and  sign  of  dignity.  It  is  thus  that 
Isaiah,  to  show  how  much  valued  those  of  God's 
people  should  be  whom  he  should  preserve, 
says,  that  seven  women  shall  take  hold  of  one 
man,  Isaiah  iv,  1,  offering  to  live  at  their  own 
expense,  provided  they  had  the  honour  to  be 
called  by  his  name.  Thus  it  is  likewise  said 
that  Rehoboam  had  eighteen  wives  and  three- 
score concubines,  and  that  he  gave  many  wives 
to  his  son  Abia,  whom  he  chose  for  his  succes. 
sor.     2  Chron.  xi,  21,  23. 

They  were  yet  very  sparing  in  the  use  of 
marriage  ;  they  did  not  only  abstain  from  it 
while  their  wives  were  big  with  child  and  other. 

*  Commentators  are  greatly  divided  concerning 
these  two  genealogies.  Some  suppose  that  in  St. 
Luke  to  be  the  genealogy  of  the  blessed  Virgin ;  and 
that  Heli,  said  to  be  the  father  of  Joseph,  was  only  his 
father-in-law,  being  the  "father  of  Mary, 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  113 

wise  indisposed,  but  all  the  time  they  were 
nurses,  for  two  or  three  years  together  ;  and 
mothers  did  not  often  dispense  with  themselves 
from  giving  suck  to  their  own  children.  We 
find  but  three  nurses  mentioned  in  the  Scripture, 
that  is,  Rebecca's,  Gen.  xxiv,  59 ;  Mephibo- 
sheth's,  2  Sam.  iv,  4  ;  and  she  that  nursed 
Joash  king  of  Judah.* 

We  ought  not  then  to  wonder  that  God  tole- 
rated polygamy,  which  was  introduced  before 
the  deluge,^  though  it  was  contrary  to  the  first 
institution  of  marriage.  For  when  it  was  in- 
stituted  in  the  terrestrial  paradfse,  there  was 
yet  no  concupiscence.  Polygamy  then  was 
like  divorces,which  Jesus  Christ  told  the  Jews 
had  never  been  allowed  them  but  (<n-  the  hard- 
ness of  their  hearts,  Matt,  xix,  8.  Beside 
wives  they  had  likewise  concubines,  who  were 
commonly  slaves.  Lawful  wives  had  no  other 
advantage  over  them  than  the  honour  of  having 
their  children  preferred  to  the  inheritance  ;  so 
that  the  name  of  concubinage  had  no  ill  signi- 
fication, as  with  us.  It  was  only  a  less  solemn 
wedding. 

This  liberty,  besides,  was  very  far  from  ren- 
dering the  state  of  matrimony  more  convenient; 
it  made  the  yoke  of  it  much  heavier.     A  hus- 

*  2  Kings  xi.  2.  But,  beside  these,  it  is  said  that 
Naomi  was  nurse  to  the  child  of  Boaz  and  Ruth. 
See  Ruth  iv,  16. 

t  Gen.  iv,  19.  Lamech  was  the  first  polygamist, 
and,  from  all  that  the  Scripture  says  concerning  him, 
there  is  much  reason  to  fear  he  was  a  very  bad 
man. 

6 


114  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

band  could  not  so  equally  divide  his  heart  among 
many  wives  as  to  please  them  all,  which  obliged 
him  to  govern  them  in  an  absolute  manner  as 
the  eastern  people  still  do  ;  so  that  there  was  no 
longer  any  equality,  friendship,  or  society  in 
marriage.  It  was  still  harder  for  the  rival 
wives  to  agree  among  themselves  ;  there  was 
no  end  of  divisions,  cabals,  and  domestic  quar- 
rels. All  the  children  of  one  wife  had  so  many 
mothers-in-law,  as  their  father  had  more  wives : 
each  espoused  the  interest  of  its  own  mother, 
and  looked  upon  the  children  of  the  other  wives 
as  strangers  or  enemies.  Hence  comes  the  way 
of  speaking  so  common  in  Scripture,  It  is  my 
brother  and  the  son  of  my  mother.  We  see  ex- 
amples of  these  divisions  in  the  family  of  David, 
and  still  worse  in  that  of  Herod.  The  liberty 
of  being  set  loose  by  divorce,  had  also  very  bad 
consequences.  People  engaged  themselves  more 
unwarily,  and  took  less  pains  to  please  one  an- 
other ;  and  a  man  had  it  in  his  power  to  have 
so  many  wives,  that  it  was  no  better  than  an 
excuse  for  debauchery.  We  know  the  disorder 
there  was  at  Rome  after  the  decay  of  the  com- 
monwealth ;  whereas,  while  good  manners  sub- 
sisted there,  that  is,  till  the  year  523  from  the 
foundation,  there  was  no  such  thing  as  a  divorce 
heard  of,  though  it  was  permitted  by  the  laws. 
(Gellius  iv,  c.  3.)  The  children  suffered  very 
much  by  it  too  :  they  were  orphans  even  while 
their  father  and  mother  were  living,  and  could 
scarcely  avoid  being  hated  by  one  of  them,  and 
taking  part  with  one  against  the  other. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  115 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Education  of  their  Chi'.drep,  their  Exercises, 
and  Studies. 

The  education  of  children  seems  to  have  been 
very  nearly  the  same  among  the  Israelites  as 
that  of  the  Egyptians,  and  the  most  ancient 
Greeks.  (Plato  Rep.  2,  3.)  They  formed  their 
body  by  labour  and  exercise,  and  their  mind 
by  literature  and  music.  Strength  of  body  was 
greatly  esteemed  ;  and  it  is  that  for  which  sol- 
diers are  mostly  commended  in  Scripture,  as 
David's  valiant  men  are.  2  Sam.  xxiii,  1,  &c. 
Foot  racing  must  have  been  one  of  their  chief 
exercises,  since  men  were  known  by  their  run- 
ning at  a  distance,  as  those  who  brought  the 
news  of  Absalom's  defeat ;  they  must  needs 
have  seen  them  run  often.  2  Sam.  xviii,  27. 
It  is  also  said  of  Asahel,  Joab's  brother,  that  he 
was  as  light  of  foot  as  a  wild  roe.  2  Sam. 
ii,  18.  Zeehariah  speaks  of  a  burdensome  stone, 
Zech.  xii,  3  ;  which  St.  Jerome  takes  for  one  of 
those  stones  which  served  to  try  men's  strength 
by  seeing  who  could  lift  it  highest  : i:  for  which 

*  St.  Jerome  assures  uS  that  this  was  an  ancient 
custom  in  all  the  cities  and  towns  of  Palest  inc.  which 
subsisted  even  in  his  days  ;  and  that  he  had  seen  a 
great  brazen  ball  at  Athens,  in  the  citadel,  near  the 
statue  of  Minerva,  which  was  used  to  try  the  strength 
of  the  Athlcta-,  that  those  of  similar  powers  might  be 
paired  together,   that  the   advantages  on   each  side 


116  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

reason  one  may  imagine  they  had  that  sort  of 
exercise.  The  example  of  Jonathan  shows  they 
used  to  exercise  themselves  in  shooting  with 
the  bow.      1  Sam.  xx,  20. 

Bat  they  did  not  make  the  exercise  of  the 
body  their  main  business  like  the  Greeks,  who 
reduced  it  to  a  profession,  and  studied  the  great- 
est improvements  in  it.  They  called  this  art 
gymnastic,  because  they  exercised  themselves 
naked,  and  the  schools  gymnasia,  which  were 
spacious,  magnificent,  and  built  at  a  great  ex- 
pense. (Hier.  Mercurial.  De  arte  gymnast.) 
There  the  best  masters,  with  many  assistants 
under  them,  formed  the  bodies  of  young  people 
by  a  very  exact  discipline  and  regular  exercise. 
Some  took  such  delight  in  it  that  they  practised 
nothing  else  all  their  lives,  and  were  wrestlers, 
&c.  by  profession.  By  this  means  they  ac- 
quired prodigious  strength,  and  brought  their 
bodies  into  such  exact  shape  that  they  served 
as  models  for  the  finest  statues.  But  in  other 
respects  it  made  them  brutal,  and  incapable  of 
any  application  of  mind  ;  nor  were  they  even 
fit  for  war,  or  any  sort  of  enterprise  that  de- 
prived them  of  their  usual  diet  or  rest,  or  put 
them  at  all  out  of  their  regular  way  of  liv- 
ing. The  Hebrews  were  too  serious  to  ^ive  in 
to  these  niceties  ;  and  it  was  an  odious  novelty 
to  them,  when  there  was  an  academy  built  at 
Jernsnlem,  under  Antiochus  .Epiphanes,  after 
the   Greek  fashion.      1  Mace,  i,  14;   2  Maec. 

might  be  equal.  (See  his  comment  on  the  above 
Jext.) 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  117 

iv,  12.  They  were  content  with  field  labour, 
and  some  military  exercises,  as  were  the  Ro- 
mans. 

Nor 'had  they  occasion  for  hard  study  to 
improve  their  mind,  if  by  study  we  understand 
the  knowledge  of  several  languages  and  read- 
ing many  books,  as  we  commonly  mean  by  it  : 
for  they  despised  learning  foreign  languages, 
because  that  was  as  much  in  the  power  of  slaves 
as  those  of  higher  rank.  (Joseph.  Antiq.  lib. 
xx,  c.  11.)  Their  native  language  was  suffi- 
cient for  them,  that  is,  the  Hebrew,  in  which 
the  Scripture  is  written.  It  has  a  resemblance 
of  their  manners  ;  the  words  of  it  are  plain — 
nil  derived  from  few  roots,  and  uncompounded  : 
it  has  a  wonderful  luxuriance  in  its  verbs,  most 
of  which  express  whole  phrases.  To  be  groat, 
to  make  great,  to  be  made  great,  are  all  simple 
words,  which  no  translation  can  fully  express. 
Most  of  the  prepositions  and  pronouns  are  no 
more  than  single  letters  added  to  the  beginning 
or  end  of  other  words.  It  is  the  most  concise 
tongue  we  know,  and  consequently  comes  near- 
est to  the  language  of  spirits,  who  have  little 
need  of  words  to  make  themselves  understood  : 
the  expressions  are  clear  and  weighty  ;  they 
convey  distinct  and  sensible  ideas,  and  the  far- 
thest from  bombast  of  all  others. 

The  genius  of  this  language  is  to  make  one 
proposition  follow  another,  without  suspending 
the  sense,  or  perplexing  us  with  long  periods, 
which  makes  the  style  extremely  clear.  Thence 
it  comes  that,   in   their  narrations,  those  that 


118  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

are  concerned  in  them  speak  with  the  utmost 
plainness,  and  in  their  own  persons,  and  do  not 
scruple  to  use  repetitions.  They  almost  con- 
stantly  relate  the  same  thing  in  the  same  words. 
And  this  is  what  makes  us,  at  first,  think  the 
Scripture  style  flat  and  heavy  ;  but  it  is  in 
reality  a  mark  of  good  sense,  solidity,  and  a  clear 
head,  in  those  who  spoke  in  that  manner. 
Though  the  style  of  the  sacred  books  is  very 
different,  we  do  not  find  that  the  language  al- 
tered from  the  time  of  Moses  to  the  Babylonish 
captivity. 

All  their  grammar  then  consisted,  like  that 
of  the  most  ancient  Greeks,  in  speaking  in  their 
own  language  well,  and  in  writing  and  reading 
it  correctly  ;  with  this  difference,  that  it  does 
not  appear  they  had  reduced  it  into  an  art,  and 
learned  it  by  rules.  Their  letters  were  those 
which  we  call  at  present  Samaritan,  because 
the  Samaritans  have  preserved  them  :  and  as 
they  do  not  run  well,  nor  are  easy  to  shape,  it 
may  reasonably  be  doubted,  whether  it  was 
very  common  among  the  Israelites  to  know 
how  to  write  :  and  the  rather,  as  learned  men 
are  called  in  Scripture  sopherin,  that  is  to  say, 
scribes,  according  to  the  old  translations  La- 
bouring  people,  too,  have  much  less  occasion 
for  writing  than  merchants  and  men  of  busi- 
ness. But  it  is  probable  that  most  of  them  knew 
how  to  read  ;  since  it  was  recommended  to  all 
to  learn  the  law  of  God,  and  meditate  upon  it 
day  and  night,  Deut.  vi,  6,  7,  &c.  :  and  this 
study  was  their  whole  employment   upon  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  119 

Sabbath  days.  (Joseph.  Ant.  1.  xvi,  c.  ii,  s.  3  ; 
Orig.  cont.  Cels.  lib.  iv.) 

This  book  alone  was  sufficient  to  instruct 
thorn  thoroughly  ;  they  saw  in  it  the  history  of 
the  world  till  their  settlement  in  the  promised 
land,  the  rise  of  all  the  nations  which  they 
knew,  and  more  especially  of  those  they  were 
most  concerned  to  be  best  acquainted  with,  the 
descendants  of  Lot  Abraham,  Ishmael,  and 
Esau.  There  they  saw  the  whole  of  their  reli- 
gion, its  doctrines,  ceremonies,  and  moral  pre- 
cepts, and  there  they  found  their  civil  laws. 
This  volume  alone,  which  is  the  Pentateuch  or 
five  books  of  Moses,  contained  all  that  they  were 
obliged  to  know.  Not  because  they  had  not 
many  other  books  ;  for,  to  omit  those  of  Joshua, 
Judges,  Samuel,  and  several  that  were  written 
after  ;  in  the  time  of  Moses,  the  book  of  the 
wars  of  the  Lord  is  mentioned,  Num.  xxi,  14  ; 
and  in  other  places  the  book  of  Jasher*  The 
books  of  Kings  often  refer  to  the  chronicles  of 
the  kings  of  Judah  and  Israel.  Solomon  wrote 
three  thousand  parables,  and  one  thousand  and 
five  songs,  1    Kings    iv,    32,    33  ;     he   wrote 

*  Josh,  x,  13,  and  Sam.  i,  18.  Our  author  calls  it 
IAvre  desjustes,  after  the  Vulgate,  liber  fu&borum:  but 
the  Chaldee  paraphrast,  "  The  book  of  the  law:"  the 

Syriac,  "  The  book  of  Canticles,"  in  one  place;  and 
"The  book  of  Ashir,"in  the»other.  Now  it  may  b" 
demoted  whether  any  of  these  come  up  to  the  original 
Wn  133  that  is,  literally,  "  The  book  of  the 
upright,"  or  "  The  book  which  is  right,"  as  the 
Seventy  seem  to  have  understood  it  by  translating  it 
errl  r«  616I18  rs  evBxc.      The  sacred  writer  appeals  to 


120  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

treatises  upon  all  sorts  of  plants  and  animals, 
and  he  himself  complains  that  of  making  books 
there  is  no  end.  Eccles.  xii,  12.  All  these, 
and  perhaps  many  others  that  we  never  heard 
of,  are  lost  ;  as  those  of  the  Egyptians, 
Syrians*  and  other  eastern  people.  The 
only  books  that  remain  of  so  great  anti- 
quity, are  such  as  God  dictated  to  his  pro- 
phets, and  has  preserved  by  a  particular  pro- 
vidence. 

It  is  not  at  all  likely  that  the  Israelites 
studied  the  books  of  foreigners,  from  whom 
they  were  so  careful  to  separate  themselves. 
And  this  study  might  have  been  dangerous  ; 
since  it  would  have  taught  them  the  impious 
and  extravagant  fables  of  which  the  theology 
of  idolaters  was  composed.  But  they  abhorred 
it  to  that  degree  that  they  would  not  so  much 
as  pronounce  the  name  of  false  gods,  Psalm 
xvi,  4 ;  Wisdom  xiv,  27  ;  and  if  they  made 
part  of  any  proper  names,  they  changed  them. 
Thus  they  said  Ishbosheth  and  Mephibosheth, 
for  Eshbaal  and  Meribbaal  ;  Bethaven  for 
Bethel  ;     and    Beelzebub    instead    of  Beelse- 

tlie  authentic  copy  of  Joshua  and  Samuel  that  was 
preserved  by  the  high  priest,  as  the  law  was,  Deut. 
xxxi,  26 ;  and  xvii,  18  :  it  may  be  in  the  tabernacle,  or 
the  temple,  for  Josephus^,  when  he  mentions  the  sun's 
standing  still  (Ant.  1.  v,  cap.  i)  says,  "  This  is  mani- 
fest by  the  writings  deposited  in  the  temple."  The 
Arabic  in  2  Sam.  i,  18,  gives  the  passage  a  strange 
turn.  "  Behold  it  is  written  in  the  book  of  Ashir,  that 
is,  the  book  of  Samuel,  the  interpretation  of  which  is 
the  book  of  Canticles  ,: 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  121 

men.*  These  fables  which  comprehend  the  whole 
doctrine  of  false  religions,  were  a  heap  of  lit s 
established  by  long  tradition  upon  the  founda- 
tions of  ancient  truths,  and  embellished  by  the 
invention  of  poets  ;  mothers  and  nurses  taught 
them  to  their  children  from  their  cradle,  and 
sung  them  at  their  religious  worship  and  feasts. 
The  wisest  of  the  heathens  saw  plainly  that 
they  tended  only  to  create  a  contempt  of  the 
divinity,  and  corruption  of  manners  :  but  the 
evil  was  past  remedy.  (Plato  Rep.  ii,  in  fine, 
et  init.  iii.) 

The  Israelites  were  the  only  people  that  re- 
lated truths  to  their  children,  capable  of  in- 
spiring them  with  the  fear  and  love  of  God,  and 
exciting  them  to  virtue.  All  their  traditions 
were  noble  and  useful.      Not  but  they  made  use 

*  Compare  1  Chvon.  viii,  33,  34,  with  2  Sam.  ii,  8, 
and  iv,  4. 

Eshbaal,  TJJDSPN  the  fire  of  Baal,  or  of  the  idol 
changed  into  Ishbosheth  PW2  li^N  the  man  of  shame. 

Mjsrjbbaal  /'J2  3'13  the  contention  of  Baal,  changed 
into  Mephibosheth,  H&2  *flD  from  the  mouth  of shame, 
both  names  being  intended  to  ridicule  those  which  ap- 
pear to  have  been  imposed  in  honour  of  the  idol. 

Bethel  ^X  fVJ  the  house  of  God,  which,  when  Jero- 
boam set  up  the  worship  of  his  golden  calves  in.it, 
was  called  Betha  yen  prtJV3  the  house  or  temple  of 
iniquity. 

Beelsemem  lD^'OW  7>'3  Lord,  or  ruler  of  the 
heavens,  wa  1 1  rough  contempt  changed  into  Beelzebub 
1-  3?  "7J73  the  fin  god,  or  the  god  of flies-,  and Beelzebue 
VOi  lj?2  the  god  of  dung.  In  this  latter  form  the 
word  is  read  in  the  Greek  Testament. 


122  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  parables  and  riddles,  beside  simple  narra- 
tions, to  teach  truths  of  great  importance,  espe- 
cially to  morality.  It  was  a  practice  among 
the  ingenious  to  propound  riddles  to  one  an- 
other, as  we  see  by  the  instances  of  Samson, 
Judg.  xiv,  14  ;  and  the  queen  of  Sheba.*  The 
Greeks  tell  us  the  same  thing  of  their  first 
sages.  (Plutarch  Comm.  Sept.  Sap.)  They 
made  use,  too,  of  these  fables,  as  Esop  did,  the 
fiction  of  which  is  so  plain  that  it  can  impose 
upon  nobody.  We  have  two  of  them  in  Scrip, 
turc,  Jotham's,  the  son  of  Gideon,  Judg.  ix,  8  ; 
and  that  of  Joash,  king  of  Israel,  2  Kings 
xiv,  9.  But  the  chief  use  of  allegories  and  a 
figurative  way  of  speaking  was  to  comprehend 
the  maxims  of  morality  in  a  few  words  and 
under  agreeable  images,  that  children  might 
learn  them  more  easily ;  and  such  are  the 
parables  or  proverbs  of  which  the  books  of 
Solomon  are  composed. 

These  parables  are  commonly  expressed  in 
verse,  and  the  verses  were  made  to  be  sung  ; 
for  which  reason,  I  believe,  the  Israelites 
learned   music    too.     I  judge  of  them  by  the 

*  1  Kings  x,  i.  Our  translation  says,  "  She  came 
to  prove  him  with  hard  questions:"  but  the  abbe  fol- 
lows the  Vulgate,  venit  tentare  eum  in  amigmatibus, 
which  is  the  same  with  the  ev  aivtxfiaai  (with  riddles 
or  enigmas)  of  the  Septuagint ;  which  is  the  true  im- 
port of  the  Hebrew  word  fn*vn2  bacheedoth,  from 
mn  chad  ah,  to  penetrate;  because  such  sayings 
penetrated  the  mind,  and  engrossed  the  attention  more 
than  others. 


I.tANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  123 

Greeks,  who  had  all  their  learning  and  polite- 
ness from  the  eastern  people.  Now  it  is  cer- 
tain that  the  Greeks  taught  their  children 
both  to  sing  and  play  upon  instruments.  This 
study  is  the  most  ancient  of  all  others.  Before 
the  use  of  letters  the  memory  of  great  actions 
was  preserved  by  song.  The  Gauls  and  Ger- 
mans retained  the  same  custom  in  the  times  of 
the  Romans,  and  it  is  still  preserved  among  the 
people  of  America.* 

Though  the  Hebrews  had  letters,  they  knew 
that  words  in  measure,  and  set  to  a  tune,  were 
always  best  remembered  ;  and  from  thence 
proceeded  that  great  care  which  they  always 
took  to  compose  songs  upon  any  important 
event  that  had  happened  to  them.  Such  are 
those  two  songs  of  Moses,  one  at  passing 
through  the  Red  Sen,  Exod.  xv,  1,  &c.  ;  the 
other  when  he  died,  to  recommend  the  observa- 
tion of  the  law,  Dent,  xxxii,  1,  &c.  Such, 
likewise,  is  that  of  Deborah,  Judg.  v,  1,  &c.  ; 
that  of  Samuel's  mother,  1  Sam.  ii,  1-19;  and 
many  others  :  but,  above  all,  the  Psalms  of 
David.  These  poems  are  wonderfully  in- 
structive, full  of  the  praises  of  God,  the  re- 
membrance of  his  loving  kindness,  containing, 
besides,  moral  precepts  and  such  sentiments  as 

*  This  custom  prevailed  also  among  the  Hindoos — 
witness  the  great  and  ancient  epic  poem  of  India,  the 
Mahabarut ;  among;  the  Persians — witness  the  famous 
Shah  Nameh  of  Ferdoosee;  among-  the  Irish,  Welsh, 
and  Scotch — witness  the  remains  of  their  ancient 
bards,  Ossian,  Urran.  Oscar,  &c.^ 


124  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

a  good  man  ought  to  have  in  every  station  of 
life.  Thus,  the  most  important  truths  and  ex- 
alted notions  were  agreeably  instilled  into  the 
minds  of  children  by  poetry  set  to  music. 

And  that  was  the  right  use  of  them.  God, 
who  created  great  geniuses  and  fine  voices,  de- 
signed, without  doubt,  that  the  owners  should 
employ  them  to  recommend  virtue,  and  not  to 
foment  criminal  passions.  The  Greeks  them- 
selves own  that  the  most  ancient  and  best  sort 
of  poetry  was  the  lyric,  that  is  to  say,  hymns 
and  odes  in  praise  of  the  Deity,  and  to  inspire 
virtue.  (Plato  Leg.  vii.)  Dramatic  poetry, 
which  consists  only  in  imitation,  and  aims  at 
nothing  but  to  divert  by  moving  the  passions, 
was  of  later  invention.  We  see  nothing  of  it 
among  the  Habrews ;  and  though  Solomon,  in 
his  Song,  makes  different  persons  speak,  it  is 
more  to  express  their  sentiments  in  a  lively 
manner,  than  to  represent  an  action  as  is  done 
in  theatrical  performances.  (Sec  the  supple- 
ment at  the  end  of  this  chapter.) 

There  are  no  remains  of  the  Hebrew  music, 
but  there  are  several  of  the  structure  of  their 
verse  :  (see  Lowth's  Dissertation  on  the  Poetry 
of  the  Hebrews;  and  Kennicott's  Hebrew 
Bible  :)  and  if  we  may  judge  of  the  beauty  of 
their  songs  by  that  of  the  words,  they  must  have 
been  excellent — grave  and  serious,  but  affect- 
ing and  diversified.  And,  if  we  may  form  an 
opinion  of  them  from  their  effects,  the  Scrip- 
ture seems  to  impute  supernatural  ones  to  them. 
We   see,  by  the  instance  of  Saul,  who  found 


MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES.  125 

himself  well  and  refreshed  when  David  played 
upon  the  harp,  that  their  music  charmed  evil 
spirits.  1  Sam.  xvi,  23.  Tue  sound  of  their 
instruments  likewise  hecamea  means  which  the 
Spirit  of  God  sometimes  used  when  he  spake  by 
the  prophets,  as  we  find  by  the  example  of  those 
whom  Saul  met,  as  Samuel  had  foretold,  and 
with  whom  he  himself  entered  into  holy  tran- 
sports of  joy,  I  Sam.  x,  5  ;  and  by  that  of 
Ehsha,  who  asked  for  a  player  upon  a  minstrel 
that  he  might  prophesy,  2  Kings  iii,  15  :  that 
is,  this  music  appeased  the  motion  of  the 
spirits  and  humours  which  the  devil  had  trou- 
bled in  those  whom  God  had  permitted  him  to 
act  upon  :  and  such  hearts  as  it  found  quiet  and 
pure  it  lifted  up  to  God,  and  warmed  them,  and 
so  disposed  them  to  receive  the  powerful  im- 
pressions of  his  Spirit  the  more  effectually. 
The  Greeks  tell  us  of  the  wonderful  effects  of 
their  music  to  excite  or  calm  the  passions  ;  and, 
unless  we  contradict  all  history,  it  must  be 
owned  that,  the  music  of  the  ancients  was  more 
affecting  than  ours. 

Not  that  it  was  an  uncommon  tiling  among 
them,  for  they  were  all  musicians  :  and,  to 
confine  myself  to  the  Hebrews,  and  speak  only 
of  such  as  were  professed  musicians,  there  were 
in  David's  time  four  thousand  Levites  appointed 
for  that  purpose  only,  1  Cliron.  xxiii,  5,  under 
the  direction  of  tivo  hundred  and  eighty-eight 
masters,  Ibid,  xxv,  7,  the  chief  of  whom  were 
Asaph,  Heman,  and  Jeduthun,  so  often  named 
in  the  titles  of  the  psalms.     David  himself  was 


126  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

a  great  poet  and  excellent  musician  ;  and  it  is 
very  well  known  how  much  the  inclination  of 
kings  conduces  to  the  improvement  of  arts. 
They  had  great  variety  of  wind  instruments,  as 
trumpets,  and  flutes  of  different  sorts  ;  drums, 
and  instruments  with  strings.  The  two  that 
are  most  frequently  mentioned,  are  kinour  and 
nabel,  which  the  Greeks  have  changed  into 
hinyra  and  nabla.  So  that  when  we  represent 
David  with  a  harp,  it  is  only  by  guess.  They 
had  instruments  of  eight  and  ten  strings. 

The  singing  of  the  Greeks  was  accompanied 
with  dancing  :  for  that  is  the  meaning  of  the 
word  chorus  or  choir,  which  the  Latins  have 
taken  from  the  Greeks,  and  which  signified  with 
them  a  company  of  dancers  clothed  and  decked 
out  in  the  same  uniform.*  They  sung  together 
and  danced  in  a  ring,  being  sorted  according  to 
their  age  and  sex,  young  men  and  maids,  old 
men  and  wives,  without  mixing  one  with  the 
other.  Now  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the 
Hebrew  dances  were  less  modest.  Choirs  are 
mentioned  at  the  procession  which  David  made 
to  carry  the  ark  into  Sion,  and  upon  occasion 
of  several  victories,  where  it  is  said  that  the 
maidens  came  out  of  the  cities  dancing  and 
singing.  (2  Sam.  vi,  5,  14,  15,  20  ;  and 
1  Sam.  xviii,  6,  7.) 

*  Xopoc,  a  dance,  and  often  in  die  profane  writers  a 
"company  of  dancers:"  hence  x°l:>,l}£lJ  which  sig- 
nifies not  only  to  li  lead  a  dance/'  but  also  to  furnish 
that  kind  of  uniform  used  by  the  chorus  or  company 
of  dancers. 


MANNERS    OI     TI1L    ISRAELITES.  127 

I  do  not  perceive  that  the  Israelites  had  any 
public  schools,  or  that  the  young  men  went 
from  their  fathers'  house  to  study.  Their  labo- 
rious way  of  living  did  not  admit  of  it.  Their 
fathers  had  occasion  for  their  assistance  in 
their  work,  and  brought  them  up  to  it  from 
their  childhood.  So  the  word  school  in  Greek 
signifies  leisure  f  as  being  the  place  where  such 
people  met,  who,  having  no  urgent  business, 
endeavoured  to  amuse  themselves  in  an  inno- 
cent manner:  and  the  Latin  word  Indus,  which 
signifies  play,  conveys  the  same  idea.  I  ima- 
gine, then,  that  their  learning  was  chiefly  ac- 
quired from  the  conversation  of  their  fathers 
and  old  men,  without  much  reading  or  regular 
1        >ns. 

Parents  were  obliged  to  inform  their  children 
of  the  great  things  God  had  done  for  them  and 
their  fathers  :  and,  upon  that  account,  the  law 
commanded  them  so  often  to  explain  the  rea- 
sons of  (heir  feasts  and  other  religious  ceremo- 
nies. Dcut.  vi,  7,  20.  These  instructions, 
thus  joined  to  sensible  objects,  and  so  frequently 
repeated,  could  not  fail  of  having  their  due 
weight.  They  taught  them,  beside,  every  thing 
relating  to  husbandry,  adding  continual  prac- 
tice to  their  lessons.  And  we  cannot  doubt  of 
their  being  very  expert  in  it,  considering  that 
for  so  many  ages  it  was  their  sole  employment. 
Now,  though  this  art  be  followed  among  us,  by 
uncultivated  people  whoseldom  reflect  upon  any 
thing,  it  nevertheless  contains  a   great  extent 

*  Sjt'o?^,  from  axo?,a^o,  to  be  unemulov'.^J. 


128  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  knowledge  much  more  useful  to  mankind 
than  that  speculative  sort  which  is  reckoned 
learning.  And  though  we  were  to  allow  nothing 
to  be  science  but  what  we  find  in  books,  both 
the"  ancients  and  moderns  have  written  suffi- 
cient on  this  subject  to  recommend  it  to  our 
esteem.* 

An  Israelite,  therefore,  who,  by  the  tradition 
of  his  fathers,  by  his  own  experience,  and  some 
reading,  was  instructed  in  his  religion,  the  laws 
that  he  was  to  regulate  his  life  by,  and  the  his- 
tory  of  his  own  nation,  who  knew  how  to  pro- 
vide himself  with  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  who 
thoroughly  understood  the  nature  of  different 
soils,  and  the  plants  that  are  proper  for  them, 
the  method  and  time  to  be  observed  in  planting 
them,  what  precautions  are  to  be  taken  against 
the  several  accidents  that  destroy  the  fruits  of 
the  earth,  how  they  are  to  he  gathered  and  pre- 
served ;  who  understood  the  nature  of  cattle, 
how  they  are  to  be  fed,  the  distempers  they  are 
liable  to,  with  the  cure  of  them,  and  many 
other  things  of  the  same  kind,  (which  most  of 
those  that  reckon  themselves  men  of  breeding 
and  letters  know  nothing  of;)  this  honest 
Israelite,  methinks,  would  be  full  as  valuable  a 
man,   as  one  bred  in   our  inns-of-court,  exche- 

*  The  works  of  Cato,  Varro,  Paladius,  theGeorgics 
of  Virgil,  and  many  others,  contain  many  important 
lessons  concerning  agriculture,  which  show  us  that  it 
had  been  carried  to  a  great  perfection  in  ancient  limes. 
In  the  present  day  it  is  become  a  science  of  the  first  im- 
portance, many  of  the  nobility,  gentry,  and  literati, 
cultivating  it  with  the  utmost  assiduity  and  success. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  129 

quer,  or  in  the  wrangle  of  the  schools.  For  it 
must  be  owned  that,  in  these  latter  ages,  curious 
studies  have  been  too  far  divided  from  those  that 
are  useful ;  the  cultivation  of  the  mind  and  the 
improvement  of  the  manners,  from  a  due  regard 
to  one's  business  and  health.  Most  of  those 
who  are  so  solicitous  about  their  intellects  take 
too  little  care  of  their  persons,  and  become  un- 
fit for  action  and  bodily  labour.  Nay,  many 
grow  so  effeminate  by  giving  themselves  to  rail- 
sic,  poetry,  and  other  studies  of  a  curious  na- 
ture, that,  with  a  very  high  opinion  of  their  fine 
genius  and  pretended  merit,  they  lead  an  inac- 
tive and  despicable  life. 

There  were,  however,  some  Israelites  that 
applied  themselves  particularly  to  study,  and 
may  be  called  learned  men,  according  to  our 
own  ideas.  It  is  said  that  in  David's  time 
there  were  men,  in  the  tribe  of  Issachar,  who 
had  understanding  of  the  times  to  know  what 
Israel  ought  to  do.  1  Chron.  xii,  32.  And 
commentators  say  that  they  observed  the  stars, 
to  regulate  the  feasts  and  the  whole  course  of 
the  year  by  them.  The  Prophet  Malachi  says 
of  priests  in  general,  that  their  lips  should  keep 
knowledge,  and  that  they  should  seek  the  law  at 
their  mouth.  Malachi  ii,  7.  One  of  their  chief 
functions,  therefore,  was  to  teach  the  law  of 
God  in  the  meetings  which  were  held  in  every 
city  on  the  Sabbath  day,  and  which  the  Greeks 
called  synagogues  or  churches,  (Orig.  cont. 
Cels.  1.  iv,)  for  both  words  signify  almost  the 
same  thing.    Other  learned  men  were  appointed 

9 


130  MANNERS    OF  THE    ISRAELITES. 

to  speak  there  too,  especially  such  as  were 
acknowledged  to  be  prophets  inspired  by  God. 
These  were  the  public  schools  of  the  Israelites, 
where  they  did  not  teach  curious  knowledge, 
but  religion  and  good  manners  ;  where  they  did 
not  instruct  children  only,  and  some  particular 
persons  who  had  nothing  else  to  do,  but  the 
people  in  general.* 

None  but  the  priests  and  prophets  undertook 
to  compose  books,  especially  history.  (Joseph, 
cont.  App.  i,  c.  ii.)  It  was  the  same  in  Egypt. 
Their  priests  renounced  all  worldly  affairs. 
They  led  a  very  serious  and  retired  life,  wholly 
employed  in  the  service  of  the  gods,  and  the 
study  of  wisdom.  They  spent  the  day  in  the 
offices  of  religion,  and  the  night  in  mathemati- 
cal contemplations,  for  so  they  called  the  study 
of  the  heavens.  They  were  the  only  historians. 
So  the  most  ancient  Roman  histories  were  the 
annals  of  their  high  priests. 

We  see  in  Scripture  history  the  character 
of  their  authors.  It  appears  that  they  were 
very  serious  and  very  wise  men  ;  old,  and  of 
great  experience,  and  well  informed  of  what 
passed.  There  is  neither  vanity,  nor  flattery, 
nor  affectation  in  them  to  show  their  wit  : 
whereas  all  these  foibles  are  to  be  discovered  in 
the  Greeks,  every  one  of  whom  had  liberty  to 
Avrite,  and  most  of  them  aimed  at  nothing  but 

*  Such  were  the  schools  of  the  prophets  at  Naioth,  in 
Ramah,  where  Samuel  presided,  1  Sam.  xix,  19,  20, 
&c,  and  at  Bethel,  where  Elijah  andElisha  gave  pub- 
lic instruction. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  131 

their  own  glory,  or  that  of  their  nation.  The 
Hebrew  historians  do  not  set  down  their  own 
names,  nor  do  they  ever  conceal  any  circum- 
stance that  appears  disadvantageous  to  them- 
selves  or  their  sovereigns.  They  that  wrote 
the  history  of  David  have  been  as  particular  in 
the  account  of  his  greatest  crime  as  in  any  of 
his  most  righteous  actions. 

They  make  neither  preface  nor  transition  ; 
they  only  relate  facts  in  as  clear  a  manner  as 
possible,  without  any  mixture  of  reasoning  or 
reflections.  But  if  we  examine  well,  we  shall 
find  that  they  chose  the  facts  which  were  proper 
for  their  purpose  with  wonderful  judgment,  and 
this  makes  their  stories  verv  short :  though, 
upon  important  occasions,  they  enter  into  the 
most  exact  detail,  and  set  the  action  before  the 
reader's  eyes  in  very  lively  colours.  It  is  plain 
they  leave  out  reflections  and  exaggerations  on 
purpose,  by  their  knowing  so  well  how  to  apply 
them  in  discourses  where  they  have  a  mind  to 
work  upon  the  passions.  So  Moses,  in  Deu- 
teronomy, makes  use  of  the  strongest  and  most 
expressive  figures  to  magnify  and  expatiate  upon 
what  he  had  only  plainly  related  in  the  pre- 
ceding books.  Thus  the  Prophet  Isaiah  barely 
relates  the  defeat  of  Sennacherib,  Isaiah  xxxvi, 
1,  &c,  compared  with  xxxvii,  37,  38,  after 
having  exaggerated,  when  he  foretold  it,  in  a 
style  that  is  truly  poetical. 

The  Hebrews  were  not  less  to  be  admired  in 
all  their  other  ways  of  writing.  Their  laws 
are  written  with  clearness  and  nrevity.     Their 


132  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

maxims  of  morality  are  contained  in  short  sen- 
tences, adorned  with  agreeable  figures,  and  ex- 
pressed  in  a  concise  style  ;  for  all  this  serves 
to  make  them  remembered.  In  fine,  the  poetry 
is  sublime,  the  descriptions  lively,  the  meta- 
phors bold,  the  expressions  noble,  and  the  figures 
wonderfully  varied.  But  it  would  require  whole 
books  to  treat  of  their  eloquence  and  poetry  in 
such  a  manner  as  they  deserve.  (See  Bishop 
Lowth's  Dissertation,  and  his  Preliminary  Dis- 
course  to  his  Translation  of  the  Prophet  Isaiah.) 
Though  they  wrote  by  divine  inspiration,  I 
do  not  think  it  necessary  to  impute  all  their 
eloquence  to  it.  They  were  only  inspired  to 
speak  truth,  and  to  make  use  of  no  word  that 
was  unfit  to  declare  the  mysterious  designs  of 
God  :  but  for  any  thing  more  the  Holy  Ghost 
made  use  of  their  natural  manner  of  expression. 
This  is  plain  from  the  different  styles  of  the 
prophets,  and  still  more  so  from  the  likeness 
they  all  bear  to  the  most  ancient  profane 
writers.  Homer,  Herodotus,  and  Hippocrates 
tell  a  story  in  the  same  way.  Hcsiod's  instruc- 
tions are  written  in  the  like  manner.  (Demosth. 
defals.  leg.  et  alibi.)  The  elegies  of  Theognis 
and  Solon  resemble  the  exhortations  of  M 
and  the  prophets.  We  see  in  Pindar,  and  the 
choruses  of  tragedians,  great  boldness  and  va- 
riety of  poetry  ;  and  the  more  ancient  Greek 
authors  are  the  more  they  resemble  the  He- 
brews, both  in  the  distinction  of  style,  accord- 
ing to  the  nature  of  the  work,  and  in  their  con- 
ciseness and  propriety  of  expression. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  133 

People  may  imagine  that  the  Hebrews  wrote 
in  this  manner  by  the  pure  strength  of  their 
genius,  and  that  the  goodness  of  their  judgment 
prompted  them  to  reject  what  was  not  suitable 
to  the  design  of  any  work,  and  to  make  use  of 
what  was  fittest  to  instruct  or  affect.  For  my 
own  part,  when  I  see  that  thev  never  fail  to 
observe  a  difference  of  style,  and  they  apply  all 
the  ornaments  of  true  eloquence  so  properly,  I 
am  rather  inclined  to  believe  they  had  already 
some  rules,  taken  from  the  experience  of  their 
fathers,  either  in  writing  or  by  tradition  among 
the  learned.  We  must  not  imagine  that  the 
Greeks  invented  eloquence  and  poetry  ;  the 
greatest  share  they  had  in  it  was  giving  names 
to  the  figures,  and  framing  all  that  artificial 
language  in  which  the  knowledge  of  gramma- 
rians and  rhetoricians  consisted  ;  but  which 
alone  never  made  either  orators  or  poets.  The 
rudiments  of  the  art  were  discovered  long  be- 
fore ;  for  the  world  was  not  young  at  that 
time  ;  it  had  existed  near  three  thousand  years 
before  Solomon,  and  it  is  nearly  three  thousand 
since.  Before  his  time  men's  lives  were  long, 
and  there  had  been  no  inundations  of  barba- 
rians in  the  countries  where  arts  and  sciences 
had  their  origin. 


134  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


A    SUPPLEMENT    TO    CHAPTER    XI. 

Concerning  the  Music  and  Poetry  of  the  Hebrews. 
(Referred  to  in  page  124.) 

There  were  no  instruments  of  music  used  in 
the  worship  of  God  from  the  foundation  of  the 
world  till  the  time  of  David.  He  introduced 
singers  and  players  on  musical  instruments, 
but  this  was  rather  by  the  permission,  than  by 
the  express  authority  of  God.  As  David  was 
a  very  elegant  poet,  and  was  led  to  devote  his 
extraordinary  talents  to  the  most  sublime  and 
glorious  of  all  subjects,  the  celebration  of  the 
being  and  attributes  of  the  most  high  God  ;  and 
as  instrumental  music  was  generally  a  conco- 
mitant of  the  poetic  gift ,  and  probably  observ- 
ing a  fondness  for  such  instruments  among  the 
people  at  large,  who  appear  to  have  made  an 
improper  use  of  them  in  feasts,  &c,  (see  Isa. 
v,  12,  compared  with  Amos  v,  23,  and  vi,  1-5,) 
he  thought  proper  to  consecrate  them  to  the 
service  of  the  sanctuary,  and  composed  a  variety 
of  odes  or  psalms  with  which  they  were  to  be 
accompanied  on  the  different  solemnities  ob. 
served  among  the  Jews. 

It  is  in  vain  to  attempt  to  trace  the  use  of 
musical  instruments  in  the  service  of  God  any 
higher  than  the  days  of  David  ;  for  the  horns 
and  trumpets  which  were  in  use  before,  appear 
to  have  answered  no  other  purpose  than  merely 
to  convoke  the  public  assemblies,  as  bells  were 


MANNERS   OF   THE    ISKAELITLfc.  135 

not  then  in  use*  Nor  does  it  appear  from  any 
part  of  the  Scriptures,  as  far  as  I  can  recollect, 
that  their  introduction  was  ever  sanctioned  by 
divine  authority.  In  1  Chron.  xvi,  42,  it  is 
said  that  Heman  and  Jeduthun  were  appointed 
with  trumpets  and  cymbals  for  those  that  should 
make  a  sound;  and  with  musical  instruments  of 
God  ;  and  this  text  is  supposed  to  be  a  clear 
proof  that  these  were  of  divine  appointment. 
But  the  last  clause,  musical  instruments  of  God, 
when  examined  in  the  original,  will  not  support 
this  inference.  CDTlSxri  Ttf  ,L?J  kelee  sheer 
haeloheem,  literally  signifies,  the  instruments 
of  God's  song  :  properly  translated  by  the  Sep- 
tuagint  opyava  ruv  oduv  tov  deov,  the  organs  of 
the  songs  of  God.  The  parallel  text  in  2  Chron. 
vii.  6,  tlic  instruments  of  music  of  the  Loi'd,  has 
precisely  the  same  meaning  with  the  above, 
the  words  being  the  same,  only  mrv  yehovah 
is  in  the  latter  text  put  for  CDTiSn  elohcrm  in 
the  former.  The  song  God  inspired,  and  com- 
manded to  be  sung ;  but  the  instruments  were 
of  a  different  appointment. 

In  the  first,  the  pure  and  perfect  ages  of  the 
Christian  church,  there  were  no  instruments  of 
music  used  in  the  worship  of  God  :  indeed  had 
they  been  proposed,  they  would  doubtless  have 
been  considered  by  the  primitive  Christians  as 
an  attempt  to  judaize  Christianity,  by  conform- 
ing the  church  to  the  synagogue. 

The  Syriac  version  of  1  Chron.  xvi,  41,  42, 
is  very  remarkable.  I  shall  subjoin  a  literal 
translation  of  it,  which  the  reader  may  com. 


136  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

pare  with  the  English  version  or  with  the  He- 
brew text.  "  These  are  the  names  of  the  men 
who  were  employed  in  praises.  Heman  and 
Erithun  (and  other  righteous  men  whose  names 
are  unknown)  that  they  might  give  thanks  to 
the  Lord  whose  goodness  is  everlasting.  And 
these  are  the  righteous  men  who  did  not  sing 
with  instruments  of  music,  nor  with  drums, 
nor  with  sistrums,  (or  harps,)  nor  with  pipes 
crooked  or  straight,  nor  with  cymbals  ;  but 
they  sung  with  a  joyous  mouth,  and  with  a 
pure  and  perfect  prayer,  with  innocence  and 
integrity  before  the  Lord  God  Almighty,  the 
God  of  Israel."  The  Arabic  version  is  almost 
word  for  word  with  the  above.  As  the  Syriac 
version  was  made  about  the  second  century, 
(some  think  in  the  apostolic  age,)  and  probably 
by  a  Christian,  we  may  sec  from  the  turn  he 
gave  to  the  original,  that  instrumental  music 
in  that  time  was  not  esteemed  in  the  church 
of  God.  Indeed  it  seems  to  have  no  good  in- 
fluence, and  is  only  calculated  to  draw  light, 
vain,  and  giddy  persons  together. 

Where  poetry  had  attained  such  a  high  state 
of  cultivation  as  the  poetic  compositions  of  the 
Hebrew  prophets  sufficiently  prove,  instrumen- 
tal  music  must  have  kept  proportionable  pace. 
According  to  the  accounts  of  the  rabbins,  the 
Hebrews  had  more  instruments  of  music  among 
them  than  any  other  people  on  the  earth.  They 
generally  reckon  about  thirty. four  different 
kinds.  Calmpt.  who  has  examined  this  subject 
with  great  accuracy  and  critical  acumen.  Dig- 


MANNERS    OF    THC    ISRAELITE?.  137 

sertation  sur  les  instrument  de  muxiqut  dcs  He- 
breux,  prefixed  to  his  commentary  on  the  Psalms, 
reduces  this  numher  by  taking  away  the  follow- 
ing  fourteen  : — 

1.  Neginotii  (piyjj)  translated  by  the  LXX, 
vfivo^  a  hymn,  and  by  the  Vulgate  cantirum,  a 
song,  signifies  those  who  play  on  instruments, 
or  the  pieces  themselves  which  are  played. 
See  Job  xxx,  9  ;  Psa.  lxix,  12,  and  the  titles 
of  several  Psalms. 

2.  Neiiiloth  (niVnj)  signifies  dances,  or 
choirs  of  dancing  women,  from  the  verb  SSn 
chalal,  to  dance.  It  is  found  in  the  title  of 
Psalm  v. 

3.  Sheminitii  (IVTOT):  as  this  word  literally 
signifies  the  eighth,  and  as  we  find  this  used 
for  an  eighth  course  of  musicians,  1  Chron.  xv, 
21,  it  probably  has  the  same  meaning  in  Psalm 
vi,  in  the  title  of  which  it  stands  in  connection 
with  Neginoth  mentioned  above. 

4.  SniGGAioN(jriy)  signifies  a  song  of  con- 
solation in  distress,  or  a  poetic  composition 
similar  to  our  elegy.  It  is  found  in  the  title  of 
Psalm  vii,  and  the  plural  Shigionoth,  in  Habak- 
kuk  iii,  1. 

5.  Gittith  (rvjvj)  a  person  of  Gath,  or  the 
icine  pressing,  probably  an  air  or  song  sung  at 
the  time  of  vintage.  It  occurs  in  the  titles  of 
the  8th,  81st,  and  84th  Psalms. 

6.  Muthlabben  (pSmo  S;?)  almuthlaben, 
concerning  the  death  of  the  son.  Title  of  Psalm 
9th.  In  1  Chron.  xvi,  20,  alamoth  (mo*??)  is 
used,  which  signifies  damsels,  or  virgins,  and 


138  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Calmet  thinks  that  a  hand  of  female  musicians 
is  meant,  and  that  Laben,  i.  e.,  to  Ben,  refers 
to  Beniah,  who  was  set  over  the  band. 

7.  Miciitam  (onm):  this  occurs  in  the  titles 
of  the  16th,  56th,  57th,  58th,  59th,  and  60th 
Psalms.  It  comes  from  the  root  oro  katham 
to  inscribe,  or  engrave  :  and  as  it  is  always  ac 
companied  with  l'lh  ledavid,  to  David,  it  pro- 
bably signifies  that  those  Psalms  were  particu. 
larly  attributed  to  David.  Those,  says  Calmet, 
who  wish  to  make  it  signify  an  instrument  of 
music,  only  make  use  of  this  cloak  to  cover 
their  idleness  or  ignorance. 

8.  Aykletii  Siiaiiak  (Titfn  nS's)  Psa.  xxii, 
1,  translated  by  the  Septuagint,  the  reception, 
or  succour  of  the  morning;  and  by  others,  the 
hind  of  the  morning  ;  appears  to  signify  a  bund 
of  either  male  or  female  musicians,  or  a  psalm 
that  ins  song  at  break  of  day. 

9.  Shoshaichui  (O'Jbap)  Psalm  xliv,  lx,  Ixix, 

lxxx,  variously  translated  by  the  aneients  and 
moderns,  seems  to  mean  rejoicings  :  and  as 
all  the  psalms  to  which  it  is  prefixed  seem 
to  be  composed  for  festive  occasions,  parti- 
cularly weddings,  it  is  probable  the  word 
only  points  out  the  rejoicings  used  on  such 
occasions. 

10.  Mahalath  (ffalO)  title  of  Psalm  53d, 
signifies  a  dance,  such  as  was  used  at  some 
religious  assemblies.  See  Exod.  xv,  20  ;  Judg. 
xxi,  21  ;    1  Sam.  xvii,  6. 

11.  JONATH    Elk.M     UechoKIM     (CD1?**     JUl' 

tZTpm).      The  dumb  dove  in  its  banishment,  pro- 


MANNERS    01     THE    ISRAELITES.  130 

bably  the  air  or  tune  to  which  some  particular 
psalm  or  ode  was  sun£. 

12.  Higaion  (p'-in)  Psalm  xcii,  4,  from  n:n 
to  murmur,  growl,  or  coo,  was  either  a  deep  hoi- 
low  bass  in  the  music  ;  or  a  mournful  tune, 
sung  on  occasions  of  public  or  private  calamity. 
But  from  its  connection  in  the  above  passage 
with  several  musical  instruments,  it  may  proba- 
bly signify  some  kind  of  harp,  or  some  mournful 
accompaniment  in  the  voice  like  our  rccifativo. 

13.  Masciiil  (vm)  occurs  in  the  titles  of 
Psalms  32d,  42d,  44th,'  52d,  74th,  78th,  and 
142d;  as  it  is  evidently  derived  from  the  root 
"Uty  to  be  wise,  to  behave  wisely  or  prudently, 
it  signifies  simply  to  give  instruction.  The 
psalms  to  which  it  is  prefixed,  are  to  be  con- 
sidered as  peculiarly  calculated  to  give  instruc- 
tion and  direction  in  the  most  important  mat- 
ters which  respect  the  well-being  of  the  body 
and  soul. 

14.  Al  Tasciiith  (nn»n  Sn).  This  term 
literally  means  destroy  not ;  and  may  signify 
either  a  deprecation  of  deserved  punishment,  or 
an  exhortation  to  take  care  of  and  preserve  in 
a  particular  manner  those  psalms  to  which  it 
is  prefixed.  They  are  the  four  following,  57th, 
58th,  59th,  and  75th. 

I  am  of  Calmet's  opinion,  that  none  of  these 
signifies  any  musical  instrument,  unless  the 
Higaion  mentioned  under  No.  12. 

In  the  Pentateuch  seven  different  kinds  of 
musical  instruments  are  mentioned,  viz.,  the 
kinnor,  or  lyre,  an  instrument  with  three  cords. 


140  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  huggab,  or  mouth  organ,  composed  of 
seven  unequal  pipes.  The  tuph,  or  tambour, 
the  skin  being  extended  only  over  one  side. 
The  machalath,  probably  a  sort  of  bagpipe. 
The  chazazeroth,  the  long  straight  trumpets  made 
by  Moses  in  the  wilderness,  and  the  schophar  or 
trumpet.  To  these  some  add  the  jubal  or  jobel, 
supposed  to  have  been  a  sort  of  musical  instru- 
ment made  out  of  a  ram's  horn ;  but  this  is  a 
mistake,  for  there  is  no  proper  evidence  that 
there  ever  was  such  an  instrument.  (See  the 
note  at  the  end  of  chapter  xvi.) 

In  the  books  of  Kings,  Chronicles,  and  the 
Prophets,  mention  is  made  of  nabelim,  psalte- 
ries or  harps ;  mezilotiiaim,  cymbals ;  me- 
nanaim,  different  kinds  of  flutes  ;  and  zalzelim, 
cymbals,  according  to  some,  and  sistrums 
according  to  others  ;  siialishim,  sonorous 
trigons  or  triangles ;  and  .mezilotiiaim,  a  species 
of  small  bells. 

In  Daniel  hi,  5,  the  following  are  mentioned  : 
karna,  the  cornet  or  horn  ;  mashrokita,  the 
jlagelet ;  kithros,  the  cithara  or  harp; 
sabeka,  the  sacbut,  a  species  of  cymbal ; 
pesanterin,  the  psaltery,  or  a  species  of  harp 
in  the  form  of  an  equilateral  triangle,  nearly 
the  same  as  the  nabla  ;  sumpiionia,  a  dulcimer 
or  cymbal  with  four  strings.  The  gnasur,  or 
hasur  {"\wy)  mentioned  in  the  Psalms,  appears 
to  have  been  an  instrument  often  strings  simi- 
lar to  or  the  same  with  the  cythara  or  harp.  As 
the  nabla  or  kinoor  were  the  most  common,  a 
farther  description  may  be  necessary. 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  141 

Nabla  or  nebel  (b21)  a  stringed  musical 
instrument,  probably  so  called  from  its  belly 
resembling  a  jug  or  flagon.  2  Sam.  vi,  5  ; 
Psa.  xxxiii,  2.  Athena?us  says,  "  ya6?,a 
<Poiviko)v  Eivai  Evpi]ua.  the  nabla  was  invented  by 
the  Phoenicians,"  which  he  proves  from  these 
words  of  Sopater  : — 

are  ra  Xiduvcu  va6?,a 


AapvyyoQwvor  aaiexopdorai  tvkoc. 

And  the  Sidonian  nabla, 

Sonorous  instrument,  is  not  unstrung. 

here  socms  indeclinable,  like  the  Phoe- 
nician and  Syriac  xhl).  Heb.  biy  Strabo, 
(lib.  x,  p.  722,  edit.  Amstel.)  acknowledges 
that  the  name  is  barbarous  or  foreign ;  tuv 
opyavuv  evict  CapCapur  ovouckjti,  vaSXa  ko.l  oau* 
fjVKi]     i)     icai     GapCiTor,     Kac    a?.?»a     nr,1«w,      "  Some 

musical  instruments  have  barbarous  names, 
as  the  nabla  and  sambuke,  the  barbitos,  the 
magadis,  and  several  others."  Josephus  (Ant. 
lib.  vii,  cap.  xii,  §  3)  describes  it  thus  :  H  da 
vn6?,a,  dodetca  Qdoyvtic;  fx*aa  TOlC  Soktv'Koic. 
KPOVETAI.  "  Tlie  nabla  has  twelve  sounds, 
and  is  struck  or  played  upon  with  the  fingers." 
In  playing  it  was  turned  about  with  both 
hands.  Thus  Ovid,  de  Arte  Amandi,  lib. 
iii  : — 

Disce  etiam  duplici  genialia  nablia  palma 
Vertere  ;  convcniunt  dulcibus  ilia  modis. 

Its  name,  like  that  of  the  utricularis  tibia, 
(English  bagpipe,)  is  taken  from  its  resemblance 


142  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

to  a  bottle  or  flagon,  (utris,)  for  thus  also  Sdj 
signifies. 

It  began  to  be  in  use  about  the  time  of 
David.  This  may  be  gathered  from  its  being 
mentioned  by  David  in  several  places  of  the 
Psalms,  and  by  the  sacred  writers  who  suc- 
ceeded, but  never  once  by  those  who  preceded 
him.  Hesychius  says  it  was  dvaqxov  a  harsh- 
sounding  instrument.  Others,  however,  highly 
commend  it.  And  in  the  Adulterer  of  Phile- 
mon, when  one  says  that  he  knows  not  what 
the  nabla  is,  another  replies,  Ow  0106a  ra6Xav; 
h6ex>  w  moff  ayaOov.  "  Not  know  the  nabla  ! 
Then  thou  knowest  naught  that  is  good." 
Thus  Bochart,  (vol.  i,  p.  728.)  And  from  the 
passage  of  Sopatcr  there  produced,  from  what 
Josephus  says  of  the  nabla,  and  from  his  join- 
ing it  in  the  place  above  cited  with  the  sivvns, 
of  which  he  says.  11  pet  /..»,".•.  Beta  \opdats 
diff  -    .  that  *•  it  is  furnished 

with  ten  strings,  and  played  upon  with  a 
plectrum."  From  all  this  taken  together  I  say 
it  is  manifest  that  the  nabla  was  a  stringed  in- 
strument, and  therefore  not,  si  a  very  ingenious 
writer  to  whom  I  am  very  much  obliged  has 
supposed,  a  kind  of  bagpipe,  sueh  as  Dr. 
Russell  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Aleppo,  p.  94)  informs 
us  is  still  in  use  about  Aleppo.  From  Psalm 
xxxiii.  2,  exliv,  9,  the  nabla  appeal^  to  have 
sometimes  at  least  had  only  t»  n  strings.  And 
the  Targum,  Syriac,  Septuagint  and  Vulgate, 
in  both  passages  agree  in  this  explanation  of 
the  word  y&f  gnasur  or  hasur 


MANNERS    OF    THn    IsRAELlTJ  U.'j 

The  kinoor  (1113)  was  a  musical  instrument 
of  the  stringed  kind.  ■  lute,  harp,  or  the  like, 
played  on  with  the  hand,  according  to  1  Sam.' 
xvi<  23  ;  though  Joeephui  (Ant.  hh.  vii.rap.  xii. 
§  3.  edit.  Hudson)  says  that  the  cinvra  davidi 
made  lor  the  Leritee,  was  furnished  with  ton 
strings,  and  played  on  with  a  plectrum.  1 
this  word,  no  doubt,  are  derived  not  onlv  the 
Greek  nwvpa,  a  harp,  by  which  the  Seventy 
very  frequently  render  it,  hut  also  «n>  -.  n])l\ 
■  unifying  lamentation  or  moaning. 
Whence,  as  Bochart  (vol.  i,  p.  729)  has  ob- 
served, it  is  prohahle  that  the  Greeks  used  this 
instrument    on    mournful     i  whereas 

among  the  Hebrews,  playing  on  the  "ru3  kit 
mm  ■  I  m  m  Gen,  \-M,  27;  2  Chron. 

xx.  27,  2S;  Job  xxi,  12;  Pea.  cxliv,  2.  :<. 
Hence,  however,  as  he  farther  remarks,  it  will 
not  follow  that  the  Hebrew  -njD  kinoor  and 
Grecian  snvpa  were  instruments  of  different 
kinds:  since  the  same  sort  of  instruments 
might  affect  the  mind  in  different  manner-, 
cording  as  it  was  differently  played  upon. 
(See  Isa.  xvi,  11,  and  Calmet  as  above,  and 
Parkhurat.) 

Effects  the  most  astonishing  and  almost  pre- 
ternatural  are  attributed  in  the  Scriptures  to  the 
Hebrew  music.  To  produce  these  the  poetic 
compositions  must  have  been  exquisitely  grand, 
the  instruments  perfect  in  their  kinds,  and  per- 
fectly  adapted  to  the  effects  they  were  intended 
to  produce,  and  the  musicians  uncommonly 
skilful.     Of  their  instruments  we  know  little 


144  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

beside  the  names,  and  even  the  signification  of 
these  is  by  no  means  well  ascertained.  But 
much  of  their  poetry  remains,  and  is  a  standing 
monument  of  the  high  state  of  cultivation  to 
which  the  most  difficult  of  all  sciences  had 
arrived  at  a  very  early  period  among  a  people 
whom  the  proud  and  insolent  Greeks  affected 
to  call  barbarians. 

Even  an  infidel  who  is  capable  of  examining 
the  poetic  compositions  of  the  Hebrews  in  their 
original  language,  will  allow  that  they  possess 
all  the  characteristics  of  the  most  energetic, 
sublime,  and  affecting  poetry.  In  sacred 
poetry  the  inspired  writers  alone  have  suc- 
ceeded :  it  belongs  to  the  divine  Spirit  to  de- 
scribe the  things  of  God  in  a  suitable  manner 
and  in  appropriate  language;  several  eminent 
men  have  written  upon  this  subject,  and  written 
well ;  but  there  is  one  point  on  which  little  has 
been  said  :  viz.,  the  combination  of  sense  and 
sound  in  various  parts  of  the  pootic  compositions 
of  the  Hebrew  writers.  For  full  evidence  of 
the  exquisite  art  possessed  by  some  of  the  pro- 
phets in  conveying  the  sense  of  their  words  by 
their  sounds,  I  shall  refer  the  learned  reader, 
first  to  the  original  of  David's  lamentation  over 
Saul  and  Jonathan.  2  Sam.  i,  19-27.  This 
lamentation  is  justly  admired,  says  Dr.  Kenni- 
cott,  as  a  picture  of  distress,  the  most  tender 
and  the  most  striking  ;  unequally  divided  by 
grief  into  longer  and  shorter  breaks,  as  nature 
could  pour  them  forth  from  a  mind  interrupted 
by  the  alternate  recurrence  of  the  most  lively 


MANNERS  OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  145 

images  of  love  and  greatness.  His  reverence  for 
Saul,  and  his  love  for  Jonathan,  have  their 
strongest  colourings  ;  but  their  greatness  and 
bravery  come  full  upon  him,  and  are  expressed 
with  peculiar  energy. 

Being  himself  a  warrior,  it  is  in  that  charac- 
ter he  sees  their  greatest  excellence ;  and 
through  his  imagination  hurries  from  one 
point  of  recollection  to  another,  yet  we  hear 
him  at  first — at  last — everywhere  lamenting — 
"  How  are  the  mighty  fallen !"  It  is  almost 
impossible  to  read  the  noble  original  without 
finding  every  word  swollen  with  a  sigh  or 
broken  with  a  sob.  A  heart  pregnant  with 
distress,  and  striving  to  utter  expressions  de- 
scriptive of  its  feelings,  (which  are  repeatedly 
interrupted  by  an  excess  of  grief.)  is  most 
sensibly  painted  throughout  the  whole. 

Even  an  English  reader  may  be  convinced 
of  this  from  the  following  specimen,  which  in- 
cludes only  the  three  last  hemistichs. 

Siphlcathah  ahabtccha  lie  mcahubath  nashim 

Thy  love  to  me  was  wonderful,  beyond  the  love  of 
women. 

Eik  iiaphclu  gibborim. 
How  are  the  mighty  fallen ! 

riDnSrs  *hi  nan  'i 

Wayobcdu  kelee  milckamah. 

And  the  weapons  of  war  perished  ? 
10 


146  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  Psalms  afford  several  instances  of  this 
connection  of  sense  and  sound.  The  following 
from  Psalm  xviii,  15,  is  a  fine  specimen  : — 

Oobrakkeem  rabb  vayhummcm. 
And  lightnings  he  multiplied,  and  confounded  them  : 

in  which  Dr.  Delany  has  justly  observed,  the 
rattling  and  pounding  ofthunder  are  distinctly 
heard  in  the  sounds  of  the  original  words. 

We  have  another  striking  example  in  the 
10th  verse  : — 

Wayircav  hhal  kerub  waiyahoph. 

He  rode  upon  a  cherub  and  did  fly ; 

nn   '833   Sj?   NTi 
Wayede  hhal  kanphec  rooach. 

Yea,  he  Hew  on  the  wing-  of  the  wind! 

How  astonishingly  are  the  blowing  and  rush- 
ing of  the  wind  expressed  in  the  last  word  of 
each  hemistich  !  The  clap  of  the  wing  also  in 
the  word  '2)3  kanphee  may  be  distinctly 
heard.  Could  such  a  coincidence  be  the 
effect  of  accident  ? 

Sternhold  and  Hopkins  have  succeeded  in 
their  version  of  this  place,  not  only  beyond  all 
their  other  efforts,  but  also  beyond  every 
ancient  and  modern  poet  on  a  similar  subject. 
Their  version  conveys  the  true  spirit  of  the 
original,  and  by  those  who  understand  it,  will 
be  found  to  be  surprisingly  literal. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  147 

"  On  cherub  and  on  cherubim 
Full  royally  he  rode ; 
And  on  the  wings  of  all  tlic  winds 
Came  flying  all  abroad." 

But  the  most  complete  and  striking  examples 
of  the  combination  of  sense  and  sound  which  I 
recollect  to  have  met  with  in  the  sacred  writ- 
ings, are  the  two  following  :  the  first  is  taken 
from  Psalm  lxxxi,  14  :  — 

Loo  ghammee  sknmeagh  lcct 
O  that  my  people  had  hearkened  unlo  rac, 

D*7rr  \m3  Soar 

Yisrael  bidernket  yehaUekool 

And  Israel  had  walked  in  my  ways  | 

The  deep  hollow  sounds  in  these  words,  in- 
terspersed  and  interrupted  at  proper  distances 
with  strong  gutturals,  show  a  mind  so  much 
penetrated  with  sorrow  and  distress,  that  every 
accent  forcibly  expresses  the  anguish  of  the 
heart ;  and  the  sounds  as  strongly  as  the  sense 
unite  in  a  last  effort  of  sorrowful,  affectionate 
eloquence  to  call  back  an  ungrateful  and  re- 
bellious,  but  tenderly  beloved  people  to  a  sense 
of  their  duty  and  interest ;  that  their  otherwise 
unavoidable  destruction  might  be  prevented. 

The  second  is  contained  in  Isa.  xxiv,  16  : — 

Wayomer  razee  lee,  razee  lee. 
And  I  said,  rav  leanness  !  my  leanness ! 


148  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

:  run   crr-m   "b  in 

Auee  lee,  bogedeem  bagadoo. 

Wo    is    me !    the    treacherous    dealers    have   dealt 
treacherously ! 

fwfa  Dn::   inn 

Oobeged  bogedeem  bagadoo. 
Yea,  the  treacherous  dealers  have  dealt  treacherously  ! 

I  question  whether  the  justly  celebrated 

B?;  6'  auruv  Trapa  Oira  no?.v6A<)ioCoio  6a?.aaat]c. 
Silent,  he  wander'd  by  the  sounding  main. 

Iliad,  i,  v.  32. 

where  the  swelling  of  the  wave  and  its  dash 
upon  the  beach  are  inimitably  expressed  by  the 
sounds  of  the  words  ;   or  the  famous 

Quadrupedante  put  rem  s&nitu  quatit  ungula  campwn, 

the  thundering  coursers  bound 

Thro'  clouds  of  dust,  and  pau-  the  tremb  wnd. 

Virgil,  En.  viii,  1.  506. 

where  the  numbers  of  the  verse  perfectly 
imitate  the  prancing  or  trotting  of  the  steeds, 
possess  such  a  claim  to  distinguished  excellence 
as  the  above.  Were  ever  plaintive  sobbings 
more  forcibly  expressed  than  in  the  two  last 
hemistichs  ? 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Politeness  of  the  Israelites. 

To  return  to  the  common  sort  of  the  He- 
brews.    Since    thev  were  so  well  instructed, 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  149 

and  born  in  a  country  where  people  are  natu- 
rally ingenuous,  they  could  not  fail  of  being 
polite  :  for  we  are  not  to  suppose  that  incon- 
sistent with  a  country  life  and  bodily  labour. 
The  example  of  the  Greeks  plainly  proves  the 
contrary.  I  mean  by  politeness  here,  in  gene- 
ral, whatsoever  distinguishes  us  from  barba- 
rous nations :  on  one  side,  humanity  and 
civility,  demonstrations  of  friendship  and  re- 
spect in  the  common  transactions  of  life  :  and 
on  the  other,  prudence  in  business,  address,  and 
propriety  of  behaviour,  and  all  that  comes 
under  the  denomination  of  good  conduct. 

As  to  civility,  the  Greeks,  living  for  the  most 
part  in  commonwealths,  were  so  jealous  of  their 
liberty  that  they  treated  one  another  as  equals, 
and  their  compliments  went  no  farther  than 
showing  esteem  and  friendship,  in  which  the 
Romans  imitated  them.  The  civilities  of  the 
eastern  people  came  nearer  to  ours,  and  were 
most  respectful.  They  called  those  lords 
whom  they  had  a  mind  to  honour,  made  vows 
of  obedience  to  them,  and  bowed  themselves  to 
the  earth  before  them,  which  the  Scripture  calls 
adoring. 

The  Hebrews  did  so  even  before  they  had 
kings,  as  early  as  the  time  of  the  patriarchs  : 
which  proceeded,  in  all  likelihood,  from  the 
customs  of  the  neighbouring  people,  who  had 
long  been  subject  to  masters.  It  was  not 
reckoned  ill  manners  to  say  thou  and  thee 
to  each  other ;  all  the  ancients  spoke  in  that 
manner,  and  most  nations  still  do  so.     It  was 


150  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

not  till  about  the  decay  of  the  Roman  empire 
that  the  plural  began  to  be  used  in  speaking  to 
one  person. 

It  was  usual  to  kiss  in  saluting  ;  and,  instead 
of  uncovering,  as  we  do,  out  of  respect,  they 
pulled  off  their  shoes  when  they  went  into  sa. 
cred  places,  as  the  eastern  nations  do  to  this 
day.  Uncovering  the  head  was  a  sign  of 
mourning. 

We  see  examples  of  their  compliments  in 
those  of  Ruth,  ii,  10, 13  ;  Abigail,  1  Sam.  xxv, 
23,  41  ;  the  woman  of  Tekoah,  2  Sam.  xiv,  4, 
9,  17,  whom  Joab  employed  to  get  Absalom 
recalled;  and  Judith,  chap,  x,  23.  All  these 
are  examples  of  women,  who  are  generally  more 
complaisant  than  men.  They  liked  to  speak 
in  parables  and  ingenious  riddles.  Their  Ian- 
guage  was  modest  and  chaste,  but  in  a  differ- 
ent manner  from  ours.  They  said  the  water 
of  the  feet,  for  urine  ;  and  to  cover  the  feet,  for 
casing  nature  ;  because,  in  that  action,  they 
covered  themselves  with  their  mantle,  after  they 
had  dug  a  hole  in  the  ground.  Deut.  xxiii,  13. 
They  said  the  thigh,  when  they  meant  the  parts 
which  modesty  forbids  to  name.  In  other  re- 
spects  they  have  expressions  that  seem  very 
harsh  to  us  ;  as  when  they  speak  of  conception 
and  the  birth  of  children,  of  women  that  are 
fruitful  or  barren,  and  make  no  scruple  of  nam- 
ins:  some  infirmities  of  both  sexes  which  we 
make  use  of  circumlocution  to  express. 

All  these  differences  proceed  only  from  dis- 
tance of  time  and  place.     Most  of  the  words 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  151 

which  are  now  immodest  according  to  the  pre- 
sent use  of  our  language,  were  not  so  formerly, 
because  they  conveyed  other  ideas  ;  and  the 
eastern  people,  especially  the  Mohammedans, 
are  ridiculously  nice  about  certain  indecencies 
that  have  no  influence  upon  the  manners,  while 
they  give  themselves  great  liberty  in  the  most 
infamous  pleasures.  The  Scripture  speaks  more 
plainly  than  we  should  do  of  conjugal  affairs, 
because  there  was  not  one  Israelite  that  re- 
nounced marriage,  and  they  that  wrote  were 
grave  and  commonly  old  men. 

As  for  prudence,  good  or  bad  conduct,  ad- 
dress, complaisance,  artifice,  and  court  intrigues, 
the  history  of  Saul  and  David  furnishes  us  with 
as  many  examples  of  them  as  any  other  with 
which  I  am  acquainted. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Their  Amusements. 

Their  easy  and  quiet  life,  added  to  the 
beauty  of  the  country,  inclined  them  to  amuse- 
ments; but  such  as  were  rational,  and  easy  to 
be  procured.  They  had  scarcely  any  but  music 
and  conviviality.  Their  feasts,  as  I  have  before 
observed,  were  made  of  plain  meat,  which  they 
had  out  of  their  own  stock;  and  their  music 
cost  them  still  less,  since  most  people  knew 
how  to  sing  and  play  upon  some  instrument. 
Old  Barzillai  names  only  these  two  pleasures. 


152  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

when  he  was  too  far  advanced  in  years  to  re- 
lish life.  2  Sam.  xix,  35.  The  author  of 
Ecclesiasticus  compares  a  concert  of  music  in 
a  banquet  of  wine  to  a  signet  of  carbuncle  set  in 
gold.  Ecclus.  xxxii,  5,  6.  So  Ulysses  frankly 
owned  to  the  Phaeacians,  that  he  knew  no 
greater  happiness  than  a  feast  accompanied  with 
music.  (Odyss.  lib.  viii.)  We  see  the  same 
pleasures  mentioned  in  those  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture  where  the  prophets  reproached  those  that 
abused  them,  but  they  added  excess  of  wine, 
crowns  and  flowers,  and  perfumes,  as  we  see 
the  Greeks  and  Romans  did.  Amos  vi,  4,  G  ; 
Isaiah  v,  11,  12;   xxviii,  3. 

We  have  a  catalogue  of  the  perfumes  which 
the  Hebrews  made  use  of  in  the  Song  of  Solo- 
mon, and  many  other  places  of  Scripture  ;  but 
especially  in  the  law,  where  it  prescribes  the 
composition  of  two  sorts  that  were  to  be  offered 
to  God,  the  one  wet,  and  the  other  dry.  Exod. 
xxx,  23,  &c.  The  drugs  there  named  for  mak- 
ing them  are  the  most  odoriferous  that  were 
known  before  musk  and  ambergris  were  found 
out. 

They  loved  eating  in  gardens  under  arboui*3 
and  shady  places,  for  it  is  natural  in  hot  coun- 
tries to  seek  coolness  and  fresh  air.  So  when 
the  Scripture  describes  a  time  of  prosperity,  it 
says  that  everyone  ate  and  drank  under  his 
own  vine  and  under  his  own  fig  tree,  which 
fruit  trees  have  the  broadest  leaves.  1  Kings 
iv,  4,  5  ;   Mic.  iv,  4 ;  Zech.  iii,  10. 

Their  employment  in  country  labour  did  not 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  153 

allow  of  their  feasting  or  following  their  diver- 
sions  every  day,  as  most  of  the  rich  do  now  ; 
but  it  served  to  make  them  relish  them  better. 
They  had  therefore  stated  times  of  rejoicing, 
Sabbath  days,  and  all  other  feasts  taken  notice 
of  in  the  law,  weddings,  dividing  the  spoil  after 
victory,  sheep  shearing,  harvest  and  vintage, 
in  each  particular  estate,  where  the  neighbours 
came  together  to  assist  each  other.  Isaiah  ix, 
3  ;  xvi,  9,  10.  It  is  well  known  that  the  feasts 
of  Bacchus  and  Ceres  had  their  rise  among  the 
Greeks  from  such  rejoicings  ;  and  we  still  see 
some  footsteps  of  it  among  the  country  people.* 
The  Israelites  had  no  profane  shows.  They 
were  contented  with  the  ceremonies  of  religion 
and  the  pomp  of  sacrifices,  which  must  needs 
have  been  very  great,  since  the  temple  was  the 
most  magnificent  building  in  the  whole  coun- 
try, and  there  were  thirty-two  thousand  Levites 
appointed  for  its  service. 

I  do  not  perceive  that  they  had  either  gaming 
or  hunting,  which  are  reckoned  with  us  among 
the  highest  diversions.  As  to  gaming,  it  seems 
as  if  they  were  entirely  ignorant  of  it,  since  we 
do  not  so  much  as  once  find  the  name  of  it  in  the 
whole  Scripture.  Not  but  the  people  of  Lydia 
had  already  invented  games,  if  what  is  said  of 
them  be  true.f     But  to  this  day  the   Arabians 

*  In  the  feasts  usually  made  at  the  conclusion  of 
harvest,  and  bringing  home  the  corn. 

t  Herodotus  says  {Clio.  p.  45,)  that  the  Ly- 
dians  invented  the  plays  of  dice,  tennis,  tables,  &c., 
(tZevpedrivai    6c     ov     Tore   nat     ruv    kv6uv,    nai    tuv 


154  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  some  other  eastern  nations  play  at  no 
games  of  hazard,  at  least  if  they  observe  their 
law.  As  to  hunting,  either  beasts  or  birds,  it 
was  not  unknown  to  the  Israelites  ;  but  it  looks 
as  if  they  followed  it  rather  for  furnishing  their 
tables,  and  preserving  their  corn  and  vines,  than 
for  pleasure.  For  they  often  speak  of  nets  and 
snares,  but  we  do  not  find  that  even  their  kings 
had  either  dogs  or  any  hunting  equipage.  It 
would  no  doubt  have  made  them  odious  to  have 
hunted  over  ploughed  hinds,  or  bred  beasts 
to  do  mischief,*  Hunting  prevails  chiefly 
in  the  vast  forests  and  untilled  lands  of  cold 
countries. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
Their  Mourning. 
After  rejoicings,  let  us  speak  of  their  mourn- 
ing and  signs  of  affliction,  The  ancients  did 
not  only  go  into  mourning  upon  the  death  of 
relations,  but  as  often  as  any  misfortune  hap- 
pened to  them  ;  and  it  did  not  consist  merely 
in  changing  dress.  The  causes  of  it  were  either 
public  calamities,  as  a  mortality,  a  general 
scarcity,  an  invasion  ;  or  private  misfortunes, 
as  the  death  of  a  relation  or  friend,  on  account 

arpayaXw,Kai  rqcTj+atptic,)  to  divert  and  amuse  them 
in  a  time  of  great  scarcity  ;  but  the  aeeount  is  accom- 
panied with  such  circumstances  a*  render  it  in- 
credible. 

*  As  it  does  those  who  employ  the m     Ives  in  this 
unmanly  and  destructive  exercise  in  \\.         ^ent  dav. 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  155 

of  his  being  dangerously  ill,  or  taken  captive, 
or  when  one  was  accused  of  a  crime. 

The  signs  of  mourning  among  the  Israelites 
were,  tearing  their  clothes  as  soon  as  they 
heard  of  any  ill  news,  or  if  they  happened  to  be 
present  at  committing  any  great  wickedness, 
as  blasphemy,  or  any  other  sin  against  God, 
1  Kings  xxi,  27  ;  to  neat  their  breast  ;  to  put 
their  hands  upon  their  head,  Jer.  ii,  37  ;  un- 
cover  it,  and  throw  dust  or  ashes  upon  it,  in- 
stead  of  perfumes,  which  they  used  in  the 
times  of  joy  ;  to  shave  the  beard  and  hair  off. 
On  the  contrary,  the  Romans,  who.  used  to 
shave,  let  their  hair  grow  in  the  time  of 
mourning. 

As  long  as  the  mourning  lasted,  they  were 
neither  to  anoint  nor  wash  themselves,  but  wear 
their  clothes  dirty  and  torn,  or  else  put  on  sack- 
cloth,  which  was  a  strait  garment  without 
folds,  and  consequently  was  very  uneasy :  they 
called  it  also  haircloth,  because  the  stuff  was 
made  of  coarse  camclot,  or  something  else  that 
was  coarse  or  rough.  They  bared  the  feet  as 
well  as  head,  but  had  their  face  covered.  Ezek. 
xxiv,  17.  Sometimes  they  wrapped  themselves 
up  in  a  mantle,  that  they  might  not  see  light, 
and  to  hide  their  tears.  They  fasted  at  the 
same  time  that  they  mourned,  that  is,  as  long 
as  they  were  in  mourning.  They  either  ate 
nothing  at  all,  or  not  till  after  sunset,  and  then 
only  plain  food,  as  bread  or  herbs,  and  drank 
nothing  but  water. 

They  continued  shut  up,  sitting  upon  the 


156  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

ground,  or  lying  in  the  ashes,  keeping  a  pro- 
found  silence,  Lament,  ii,  10,  and  not  speaking 
but  to  bemoan  themselves,  or  sing  some  doleful 
song.  Mourning  for  a  dead  person  commonly 
lasted  seven  days,  1  Sam.  xxxi,  13  ;  sometimes 
they  continued  it  a  month,  as  for  Aaron  and 
Moses,  Num.  xx,  29 ;  Deut.  xxxiv,  8  ;  and 
sometimes  seventy  days,  as  they  did  for  the  pa- 
triarch Jacob.*  But  some  widows  mourned 
their  whole  lives,  as  Judith,  and  Anna  the  pro- 
phetess. 

Thus  their  mourning  was  not,  like  ours,  a  mere 
ceremony,  in  which  the  ricli  only  observe  some 
set  forms.  It  was  attended  with  all  the  natu- 
ral consequences  of  real  grief;  for  a  person  in 
affliction  takes  no  care  of  his  dress,  or  of  keep- 
ing himself  clean  ;  he  can  hardly  resolve  to 
eat ;  he  speaks  not-,  or  if  he  docs,  it  is  only  to 
bewail  himself;  be  goes  not  abroad,  and  avoids 
all  diversions.  The  Israelites  were  not  the 
only  people  that  mourned  after  this  manner; 
the  Greeks  and  Romans  did  so  long  after  ;  since 
St.  Chrysostom  describes  it  to  be  pretty  much 
the  same  in  his  time.  (Chrysost.  ad  Demetr. 
de  compunct.  t.  C.)  I  do  not  doubt  but  some 
acted  a  part,  and  did  all  that  I  mentioned  with- 
out being  in  any  great  concern;  those,  how- 
ever, that  were  in  earnest  were  at  liberty,  if 
they  pleased,  to  indulge  themselves  in  it. 

*  Gen.  i.  3.  But  this  seems  to  have  been  an 
Egyptian  custom  rather  than  one  peculiar  to  the 
Hebrews;  for  it  is  expressly  said  that  it  was  the 
Egyptians  who  moumeaforktm  (Jacob)  threescore  and 
ten  ikivs. 


MANNERS    OF    TITE    ISRAELITES.  157 

But  in  general  both  the  Israelites  and  all  the 
ancients  followed  nature  more  than  we,  and 
were  under  less  constraint  in  venting  their 
passions.  They  sung  and  danced  when  they 
were  pleased  ;  and  wept  and  cried  aloud  when 
they  were  grieved.  When  they  were  afraid, 
they  owned  it  frankly  ;  and  in  their  anger  they 
abused  one  another  heartily.  Homer  and  the 
tragic  poets  furnish  us  with  examples  in  every 
page.  See  what  affliction  Achilles  is  in  for  the 
death  of  Patroclus,  and  in  Sophocles  the  bitter 
lamentations  of  (Edipus  and  Philoctetes.  Phi- 
losophy  and  Christianity  have  now  corrected 
the  outward  behaviour  in  those  that  are  well 
bred  and  have  a  good  education.  They  arc 
taught  to  speak  like  heroes  or  saints,  though 
most  are  not  at  all  better  at  the  bottom, 
and  are  contented  to  disguise  their  passions, 
without  conquering  or  even  striving  against 
them. 


CHAPTER  XV. 
Their  Funerals.* 

Their  funerals  will  fall  in  pretty  well  here 
with  their  mourning.  The  ancients  in  general 
took  great  care  about  them,  and  looked  upon 
it  as  a  terrible  misfortune  that  their  bodies,  or 
those  of  their  friends,  should  lie  exposed  to  be 

*  For  ample  information  on  the  subject  of  this 
chapter  see  Joan.  Nicolai  de  Sepulchris  Hebrceorum, 
4to,  Licg.  Bat.  1706. 


158  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

torn  by  wild  beasts  and  birds,  or  to  putrify  above 
ground,  and  infect  the  living.  It  was  a  conso- 
lation to  rest  in  the  sepulchre  of  their  fathers. 
Instead  of  burning  the  bodies,  as  the  Greeks 
did  to  preserve  the  ashes,  the  Hebrews  buried 
the  common  sort  of  people,  and  embalmed  per- 
sons of  distinction  to  lay  them  in  sepulchres. 
They  also  sometimes  burned  perfumes  over  the 
corpse.  At  the  funeral  of  Asa,  king  of  Judah, 
it  is  said,  "  they  laid  him  on  a  bed  which  was 
filled  with  sweet  odours,  and  divers  kinds  of 
spices  prepared  by  the  apothecaries'  art ;  and 
they  made  a  very  great  burning  for  him  ;"  (2 
Chron.  xvi,  14,  compared  with  2  Chron.  xxi,  19, 
and  Jer.  xxxiv,  5  ;)  and  that  this  was  customary 
appears  from  other  passages.  They  embalmed 
almost  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Egyptian*, 
wrapping  the  corpse  in  a  great  quantity  of  dry- 
ing spices  ;  after  this  they  laid  it  in  the  sepul- 
chre, which  was  a  little  cavity  or  closet,  cut 
in  the  rock  so  artfully  that  some  had  doors 
to  shut,  which  turned  upon  hinges,  and  a 
table  to  lay  the  body  upon,  all  cut  out  of  th.e 
same  stone.  There  are  still  many  of  them  to  be 
seen. 

They  that  attended  the  funeral  were  in 
mourning,  and  wept  aloud,  as  they  did  at  the 
burial  of  Abner.     2  Sam.  iii,  31. 

There  were  women  that  made  a  trade  of  cry- 
ing upon  these  occasions,  and  joined  the  mourn- 
ful sound  of  flutes  with  their  voices.*     In  fine, 

*  Jer.  ix.  17 ;  Matt,  ix,  23.  This  ceremony  is  still 
kept  up  among  the  native  Irish ;  in  what  is  termed 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  159 

they  composed  songs  instead  of  funeral  orations 
for  illustrious  persons  that  came  to  an  unfor- 
tunate end.  Such  were  those  that  David  made 
upon  the  death  of  Saul.  2  Sam.  i,  17,  and  Jere- 
miah  the  prophet  upon  that  of  Josiah,  2  Chron. 
xxxv,  25. 

Though  burying  the  dead  was  a  duty  of 
piety,  yet  there  was  no  religious  ceremony  used 
at  it  :  on  the  contrary  it  was  a  profane  action, 
and  rendered  all  those  unclean  that  were  con- 
cerned in  it,  till  they  were  purified  ;  because 
all  dead  bodies  are  either  actually  corrupted,  or 
in  a  state  that  tends  to  it.  Thus  priests  were 
so  far  from  being  necessary  at  burials,  that  they 
were  absolutely  forbidden  to  assist  at  any,  ex- 
cept of  their  very  near  relations.  Lev.  xxi,  1, 
2,  3.  When  Josiah  designed  to  root  out  idola- 
try, he  caused  the  bones  of  the  false  prophets 
to  be  burned  upon  the  altars  of  the  idols, 
2  Chron.  xxxiv,  5,  to  inspire  his  people  with  a 
greater  abhorrence  of  them. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Their  Religion. 

What  has  been  said  relates  to  the  private 
life  of  the  Israelites.  We  come  now  to  their 
religious  and  political  government.  I  shall  not 
at   present  be  very  prolix  in   explaining  their 

their  Caoinian  or  funeral  cry,  between  whose  custom? 
and  those  of  the  ancient  Hebrews  there  is  a  striking 
similarity. 


160  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

creed  :  we  ought  to  be  acquainted  with  it,  for 
it  is  contained  in  our  own.  I  shall  only  ob- 
serve  that  some  truths  were  revealed  to  them 
clearly,  while  others  were  still  obscure,  though 
they  were  already  revealed.  (Jos.  cont.  App. 
1.  ii,  c.  8.) 

What  they  knew  distinctly  was  this  :  that 
there  is  but  one  God,  Deut.  iv,  39 ;  vi,  4  : 
that  he  governs  all  things  by  his  providence, 
Psa.  civ,  cxxv,  that  there  is  no  trust  to  be  put 
in  any  but  him,  nor  good  to  be  expected  from 
any  one  else,  Psa.  lxii  ;  Isa.  xxxvi,  xxxvii ; 
Jer.  xvii,  5-8  :  that  he  sees  every  thing,  even 
the  secrets  of  the  heart,  Psa.  cxxxix  :  that  he 
influences  the  will  by  his  inward  operation, 
and  turns  it  as  he  pleases,  Prov.  xxi,  1  :  that  all 
men  are  born  in  sin,  and  naturally  inclined  to 
evil,  Psa.  Ii,  5  ;  Gen.  vi,  5  :  that,  however,  they 
may  do  good,  yet  only  by  God's  assistance, 
Deut.  xxx,  6  ;  Ezek.  xxxvi,  25,  27  :  that  they 
are  free,  and  have  the  choice  of  doing  good  or 
evil,  Deut.  xxx,  19,  20  :  that  God  is  strictly 
just,  and  punishes  or  rewards  men  according  to 
their  works,  Psa.  xxxvii,  1,  6  ;  xc,  1,  &c.  : 
that  he  is  full  of  mercy  and  compassion  for 
those  that  sincerely  repent  of  their  sins,  Deut. 
xxxii,  1,  2  ;  Exod.  xxxiv,  7;  Num.  xiv,  18  : 
that  he  judges  the  actions  of  all  men  after  their 
death  ;*  whence  it  follows  that  the  soul  is  im- 
mortal, and  that  there  is  another  life. 

*  Eccles.  viii,  11,  xi,  9,  xii,  14;  Wisdom  ii,  23. 
How  far  this  was  their  general  belief,  I  must  leave 
to  be  settled  between  Dr.  Warburton  and  his  op- 
ponents. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  161 

Thcv  knew  besides,  that  God,  out  of  his  mere 
loving-kindness,  had  chosen  them  from  among 
all  mankind  to  he  his  faithful  people,  Dcut.  vii, 
6  ;  ix,  5,  6  :  that  from  them,  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah,  and  the  family  of  David,  would  be  born 
a  Saviour,  Gen.  xlix,  10;  Isa.  xi,  1,  10,  that 
should  deliver  them  from  all  their  hardships, 
and  bring  all  nations  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
true  God.  All  this  they  knew  very  clearly,  and 
it  was  the  most  usual  subject  of  their  prayers 
and  meditations.  This  was  that  exalted  wis- 
dom which  distinguished  them  from  all  the  people 
of  the  earth.  For  whereas,  in  other  nations, 
none  but  the  wise  men  knew  some  of  these 
great  truths,  and  that  but  imperfectly,  and  had 
different  opinions  about  them  ;  (Orig.  cont. 
Cels.  ;)  all  the  Israelites  were  instructed  in 
this  doctrine,  and  did  not  vary  the  least 
in  their  notions  about  it.  (Joseph.  1.  ii,  c. 
A  pp.  6.) 

The  truths  they  were  taught  more  obscurely 
were,  that  in  God  there  are  three  persons, 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  Gen.  i,  2G  ;  Psa. 
xxxiii,  6  ;  Isa.  xlviii,  16  :  that  the  Saviour  they 
expected  should  be  God,  and  the  Son  of  God, 
Prov.  xxx,  4  :  that  he  should  he  both  God  and 
man  at  the  same  time,  Isa.  vii,  14  :  that  God 
would  not  give  men  his  grace  and  the  assistance 
necessary  to  perform  his  law,  but  through  this 
Saviour,  and  upon  account  of  his  merits,  Psa. 
xlv,  6,  7;  Gen.  xxii,  18  :  that  he  should  suffer 
death  to  expiate  the  sins  of  mankind,  Isa.  liii, 
5,  6, 11  ;   Dan.  ix,  26  :  that  his  kingdom  should 

11 


162  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

be  altogether  spiritual :  that  all  men  shall  rise 
again,  Job  xix,  25-27  :  that  in  another  life 
there  shall  be  a  just  reward  for  the  good,  Psa. 
xvii,  15,  and  punishment  for  the  wicked.  All 
this  is  taught  in  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, but  not  so  clearly  that  all  the  people 
knew  it ;  neither  were  men  capable  at  that 
time  of  bearing  such  sublime  truths. 

But  my  design  is  only  to  explain  in  what 
the  outward  practice  of  their  religion  differed 
from  our  customs.  They  had  only  one  temple 
and  one  altar  on  which  it  was  lawful  to  offer 
sacrifice  to  God  :  this  was  a  symbol  of  God's 
unity  :  and  this  building  was  the  most  magni- 
ficent in  the  whole  world,  to  represent  also  his 
sovereign  majesty.  It  was  not  one  only  build- 
ing, like  most  of  our  churches,  but  a  great  en- 
closure, comprehending  courts  surrounded  with 
galleries,  and  several  offices  for  the  different 
courses  of  priests  and  Levites,  besides  the  body 
of  the  temple.  The  temples  of  other  nations, 
as  the  Egyptians  and  Chaldeans,  had  also 
large  edifices  adjoining  to  them,  and  stood 
upon  a  great  deal  of  ground  :  but  they  always 
planted  trees  about  them :  whereas  the  Israel- 
ites would  not  suffer  any  to  grow  near  theirs, 
that  they  might  keep  entirely  free  from  the 
superstition  of  groves,  which  the  Pagans  held 
sacred. 

The  body  of  the   temple  was  sixty*  cubits 

*  We  find  two  different  cubits  in  the  Scripture;  one 
of  them  equal  (as  Dr.  Arbuthnot  says)  to  an  English 
foot,  nine  inches  and  eight  hundred  and  eighty-eight 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  163 

long,  and  twenty  broad,  and  thirty  high,  with- 
out reckoning  the  holy  of  holies,  which  joined 
to  it  on  the  same  floor,  and  was  twenty  cubits 
in  length,  and  twenty  in  breadth,  and  twenty 
in  height.  (1  Kings  vi,  2,  3,  20;  Jos.  Ant. 
1.  xv,  c.  ult.,  and  de  bell.  Jud.  1.  vi,  c.  6.)  At 
the  entrance  there  was  a  porch  that  supported 
a  great  tower  a  hundred  and  twenty  cubits 
high,  and  twenty  broad.  2  Chron.  iii,  4  ;  1 
Kings  vi,  3.  I  leave  the  learned  to  judge  of 
the  proportions.  But  I  must  desire  those  that 
think  the  temple  small  to  consider  that  the  people 
were  never  to  go  into  it  ;  only  the  priests,  and 
such  as  waited  on  them,  and  that  at  stated 
times,  morning  and  evening,  to  light  the  lamps, 
and  oner  bread  and  perfumes.  The  high  priest 
was  the  only  person  that  entered  into  the  sane  • 
tuary  where  the  ark  of  the  covenant  stood,  nor 
did  he  go  in  oftener  than  once  a  year. 

The  whole  temple   and  sanctuary,  too,  were 
wainscoted  with  cedar,  adorned  with  carvings, 

thousandths  of  an  inch;  being  a  fourth  part  of  the 
fathom,  double  the  span, and  six  times  the  palm.  The 
"other  equal  to  one  foot  and  eight  hundred  and  twentv- 
four  thousandths  of  a  foot,  or  the  four  hundredth  part  of 
a  stadium.  The  Romans  too  had  a  cubit  equal  to  one 
English  foot,  five  inches,  and  four  hundred  and.  six 
thousandths  of  an  inch.  Father  Mersenne  makes  the 
Hebrew  cubit  one  foot  four  digits  and  five  lines. 
with  regard  to  the  foot  of  the  capital.  According  to 
Hero,  the  geometrical  cubit  is  twenty-four  digits: 
and  according  to  Vitruvius,  the  foot  is  two-thirds  of 
the  Roman  cubit,  i.  c,  sixteen  digits  or  fingers' 
breadths.  The  Scripture  says  here,  the  cubits  were 
after  the  fir  si  measure.     Vid.  2  Chron.  iii,  3.     E.  F. 


164  MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

and  all  covered  with  plates  of  gold.  On  the 
outside  it  was  surrounded  with  two  cedar  floors, 
which  made  three  stories  of  chambers  for  differ- 
ent uses.  (Ccenacula.)  Before  the  temple, 
in  a  great  court,  was  the  altar  for  holocausts, 
or  whole  burnt-offerings,  that  is  to  say,  a  plat- 
form thirty  cubits  square  and  fifteen  high.  The 
priests  went  up  to  it  by  an  easy  ascent  with- 
out steps,  to  place  the  wood  and  victims  in 
order.  In  the  same  court  were  ten  great  brazen 
basins  set  upon  rolling  bottoms  ;  and  that  which 
was  supported  by  twelve  oxen  the  Scripture 
calls  the  brazen  sea. 

This  court  belonged  to  the  priests,  especially 
that  part  between  the  altar  and  the  porch  ;  for 
the  laity  might  advance  as  far  as  the  altar  to 
present  their  victims  and  slay  them  when  they 
offered  sacrifices.  The  Levites  stood  upon 
the  stairs  of  the  porch  which  faced  the  temple 
to  sing  and  play  upon  musical  instruments. 
Ezek.  xl,  xli,  xlii.  The  court  of  the  priests 
was  enclosed  with  galleries,  and  surrounded 
with  a  first  court  much  larger,  which  was  the 
usual  place  for  the  people,  where  the  women 
were  separated  from  the  men,  and  the  Gentiles 
might  not  come  any  farther  than  to  stand  under 
the  galleries  which  made  the  enclosure  of  the 
first  court.  There  were  several  parlours,  cham- 
bers, and  storehouses,  for  different  uses,  ad- 
joining to  these  galleries  of  each  enclosure. 
(Gazophylacia,  Pastophoria,  Thalami,  Exedrse, 
vid.  Jer.  xxxv,  4.) 

They  had  treasuries  for  the  sacred  vessels  of 


MANNERS   OF   THE  ISRAELITES.  105 

gold  and  silver,  which  were  so  numerous  that, 
even  at  their  return  from  the  captivity,  they 
brought  home  five  thousand  four  hundred,  1 
Esd.  ii,  14  ;  vestries  likewise  for  the  sacerdo- 
tal habits,  Ezek.  xliv,  19,  and  storehouses,  where 
they  laid  up  the  offerings  set  apart  for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  priests  and  Levites,  widows  and 
orphans ;  and  what  was  committed  to  their 
charge  by  private  people,  2  Chron.  xxxi,  11 ;  2 
Mac.  iii,  10.  For  it  was  customary  with  the  an- 
cients to  deposit  what  was  given  for  the  public 
in  temples.  (Talmud.  Cod.  Middoth.)  In  other 
places  they  kept  wine  and  oil  for  the  libations, 
salt  to  season  all  the  sacrifices,  and  the  lambs 
that  had  been  picked  out  to  be  offered  at  the 
evening  and  morning  sacrifice,  which  was  never 
omitted.  In  other  places  they  made  show-bread, 
and  what  other  pastry  was  necessary  for  the 
sacrifices.  They  had  kitchens  for  the  flesh  of 
the  victims,  eating  rooms  for  the  priests  and 
guard  of  the  Levites,  that  kept  the  doors  and 
watched  the  temple  day  and  night  ;  beside 
lodgings  for  those  of  them  that  were  musicians, 
Ezek.  xl,  44  ;  one  where  the  Nazarites  were 
shaved  after  their  vow  ;  another  to  examine 
lepers  in  a  hall  where  the  chief  council  of  seventy 
elders  was  held,  and  other  rooms  of  the  same 
nature,  with  which  we  are  not  so  particularly 
acquainted.  So  many  fine  regular  buildings 
gave,  no  doubt,  a  high  idea  of  the  great  King 
that  was  served  in  that  sacred  place. 

They  offered  four  lambs  every  day  for  a  ho- 
locaust,  two  in   the  morning  and   two  in  the 


l(j(3  MANNERS    OF  THE    ISRAELITES. 

evening  :  and  this  is  what  was  called  the  con- 
tinual sacrifice.  (TDfi  evtfefo^jo^of,  juge  sacri- 
ficium.)  On  Sabbath  and  festival  days  the  sa- 
crifices were  multiplied  in  proportion  to  the 
solemnity,  without  reckoning  the  offerings  of 
private  people,  which  were  daily  very  numerous. 

We  are  offended  at  the  bloody  sacrifices 
which  made  the  temple  a  shambles  :  but  it  was 
the  same  among  other  nations  ;  and  the  Israel- 
ites had  taken  sufficient  precautions  for  per- 
forming these  sacrifices  with  all  the  cleanliness 
and  decency  imaginable.  The  situation  of  the 
temple  contributed  to  it :  for,  as  it  was  upon  a 
mountain,  they  had  made  drains  underneath  to 
carry  oft'  the  blood  and  nastiness.  The  pecu- 
liar part  of  the  priests'  office  was  only  to  pour 
out  the  blood,  light  the  fire,  and  lay  the  pieces 
upon  it  that  were  to  be  offered.  Lev.  iv,  10. 
There  were  others  to  kill  the  victims,  prepare 
them,  cut  them  in  pieces,  and  dress  them  ;  we 
see  it  in  the  law,  and  the  story  of  the  sons  of 
Eli.  1  Sam.  ii,  13.  The  priests  never  did 
these  things  but  at  the  public  sacrifices  that 
were  offered  for  all  the  people. 

After  this  we  are  not  to  think  the  compari- 
son of  a  pot  strange,  which  we  read  of  in  Je- 
remiah and  Ezekiel,  to  represent  Jerusalem. 
Jer.  i,  13  ;  Ezek.  xxiv,  3,  4.  These  two  pro- 
phets were  priests,  and  used  to  see  the  sancti- 
fied meat  dressed.  Now  they  esteemed  every 
thing  honourable  that  was  employed  in  the 
service  of  God,  and  the  performing  of  the  law  : 
besides,  it  was  usual  for  the  very  best  of  people 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  167 

to  work  with  their  own  hands,  and  do  the  ne- 
cessary offices  of  life  themselves,  as  we  said 
before.  Thus,  in  Homer,  king  Agamemnon 
kills  the  lambs  with  his  own  hands,  (Iliad  iii, 
v.  290,)  the  blood  of  which  was  the  seal  of  the 
treaty  he  had  made  with  the  Trojans.  Thus, 
when  Nestor  sacrificed  to  Minerva,  his  own 
sons  kill  the  victims,  cut  the  flesh  in  pieces,  and 
broil  it.  (Odyss.  iii,  v.  448-465.)  Homer 
abounds  with  examples  of  this  sort,  not  only 
when  he  is  speaking  of  religious  matters,  but 
upon  other  occasions;  as  when  Achilles  enter- 
tained the  messengers  of  the  other  Grecian 
generals. 

As  to  the  rest,  every  thing  that  is  prescribed 
by  the  law  relating  to  the  quality  of  victims, 
and  the  manner  of  performing  the  sacrifices, 
tended  rather  to  cure  the  Israelites  of  their  su- 
perstitions by  confining  them  to  a  few  ceremo- 
nies, than  to  introduce  new  ones.  (Tertull.  in 
Marc.  1.  ii,  cap.  18.)  Idolaters  sacrificed  in 
more  places,  used  more  ceremonies,  and  a  great- 
er variety  of  animals,  (Herod.  1.  ii,  c.  40:)  for 
they  had  every  where  temples  and  altars,  and 
each  family  had  their  domestic  gods  and  parti- 
cular superstitions.  Thus  God  prepared  his 
people  in  a  distinct  manner  for  the  abolishing 
bloody  sacrifices,  telling  them  often  at  the  same 
time,  by  his  prophets,  that  he  had  no  need  of 
them,  that  they  were  not  essential  to  religion, 
and  that  the  worship  most  agreeable  to  him 
was  gratitude  and  purity  of  heart.  1  Sam.  xv, 
22  ;  Psa.  1,  8,  &c. ;   Isa.  lxvi,  3, 


168  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

It  was  necessary  for  the  priests  to  be  married, 
as  the  priesthood  was  annexed  to  the  family  of 
Aaron  :  but  they  parted  from  their  wives  during 
the  time  of  their  officiating,  and  drank  neither 
wine  nor  any  other  liquor  that  could  intoxi- 
cate. Lev.  x,  9.  The  same  abstinence  may 
he  observed  among  idolaters,  especially  the 
Egyptians  ;  and  their  priests  wore  nothing  but 
linen,  and  shoes  made  of  the  plant  papyrus 
that  gives  name  to  paper,  that  they  might  not 
have  any  thing  about  them  that  came  from  dead 
beasts,  and  tended  to  corruption.  The  Israel- 
itish  priests  officiated  barefoot,  but  with  linen 
garments  on.  They  were  forbidden  to  wear 
any  woollen,  and  put  off  those  sacred  vestments 
when  they  came  out  of  their  court  to  go  into 
that  of  the  people.  Ezek.  xliv,  17.  The  priests 
and  all  the  Levites  led  a  pastoral  life,  (that  was 
so  dear  to  the  patriarchs  when  they  were  not 
upon  duty,  and  had  no  other  substance  than 
their  Hocks  :)  for  they  were  excluded  from  any 
share  of  land,  to  wean  them  the  more  from  tem- 
poral cares,  and  give  them  greater  leisure  to 
employ  themselves  in  the  affairs  of  religion. 
Yet  they  were  wealthy  when  the  people  paid 
them  justly  what  was  ordered  by  the  law  ;  for, 
though  there  were  fewer  of  that  tribe*  than  of 
any  else,  they  had  tithe  of  all  fruits  gathered 
by  the  other  twelve,  and  consequently  their 
share  was  the  largest.     They  had,  besides,  the 

*  About  a  30: h  of  the  whole.  Nearly  a  27th  part, 
Num.  i,  3-2:  iii,  43,  and  a  32d  in  1  Sam.  xxiv,  0 ; 
1  Chron.  xxiii    8  E.  F. 


MVNNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  109 

firstlings  of  all  animals,  without  reckoning  their 
own  cattle,  and  the  daily  offerings,  on  Which 
the  priests  lived  when  they  served  at  the  altar. 

1  do  not  perceive  that  they  were  excluded 
from  any  civil  office :  they  bore  arms  like 
other  men,  and  the  priests  sounded  the  trumpet 
in  the  army,  and  upon  all  other  occasions, 
2  Chron.  xiii,  12  ;  for  they  made  use  of  silver 
trumpets  to  proclaim  the  feasts  and  call  the 
people  to  public  prayers  ;  and  the  name  of 
jubilee  is  derived  from  a  ram's  horn  which  was 
sounded  to  give  notice  of  its  opening.*  The 
ancient  monks  of  Egypt  observed  the  custom 
of  blowing  a  trumpet  at  the  hours  of  prayer  ; 
for  the  use  of  bells  is  more  modern. 

The  feasts  of  the  Israelites  were  the  Sab- 
bath ;  the  first  day  of  each  month,  called 
in  our  translation  calends  or  new  moon  ;  the 
three    great  feasts  of  the   passover,  penteeost, 

*  Num.  x;  Joseph.  Ant.  iii,  12;  Lev.  xxv,  9. 
Jubilee  in  Hebrew  SjV  yobel,  some  say  from  ^ 
yabal,  to  bring  or  carry  along  ;  there  is  no  evidence 
that  it  ever  signifies  a  ram'shorn,  though  translated  so 
in  a  few  places  of  our  English  version,  bul  none  of 
the  ancient  versions  acknowledge  this  sense  of  the 
word  except  the  Chaldee.  The  word  is  of  uncertain 
etymology;  Josephus  says  it  signifies  liberty. — 
ehevBepiav  (5e  mj/iatvei  rovvofta.  (Ant.  lib.  iii,  c.  10,  p. 
95,  edit.  Colon.  1691.)  What  authority  he  had  for  this 
interpretation  of  the  word  I  know  not :  but  it  is  full  as 
likely  as  the  rabbinical  definition  ram's  horn,  which  is 
now  commonly  imposed  on  it.  Calmet  derives  it  from 
vlTH  hobeel,  to  cause  to  bring  back  or  recall,  be- 
cause estates,  &c,  which  had  been  alienated  were 
then  brought  back  to  their  primitive  owners.  This 
appears  to  be  the  true  derivation  of  the  word. 


170  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  tabernacles,  instituted  in  memory  of  the 
three  greatest  blessings  they  received  from 
God,  the  coming  out  of  Egypt,  the  promulga- 
tion of  the  law,  and  their  settlement  in  the  pro- 
mised land  after  their  journeying  in  the 
wilderness,  where  they  had  so  long  lodged 
under  tents.  Levit.  xxiii.  These  great  so- 
lemnities lasted  seven  days,  probably  in  me- 
mory of  the  week  of  the  creation. 

Their  year  consisted  of  twelve  months,  each 
of  thirty  days,*  very  little  different  from  ours. 
Thus  we  find  it  regulated  from  Noah's  time,  as 
appears  by  the  date  of  the  deluge  ;  but  it  is 
thought  it  began  then  at  the  autumnal  equinox. 
Moses  was  ordered  to  begin  it  in  spring,  in  the 
month  Abib,  which  was  that  of  the  passover, 
Exod.  xiii,  4  ;  and  it  is  with  respect  to  the  first 
month  that  the  others  are  reckoned,  which  are 
only  named  from  their  number.  They  agree 
very  nearly  with  our  Roman  months,  the  names 
of  which  come  from  the  old  year  that  began  in 
the  month  of  March.  Thus,  the  eighth  month 
was  October,  at  least  part  of  it  ;  the  ninth 
happened  in  November,  and  so  on.  They 
computed  their  month  by  the  moon,  at  least  in 
later  times  ;  not  astronomically,  but  according 
to  its  appearance,  from  the  day  that  they,  whose 
business  it  was,  had  declared  the  new  moon, 
which  was  the  day  after  it  appeared. 

The  feasts  of  the  Israelites  were  true  feasts, 
that  is  to  say,  times  of  real  joy.     All  the  men 

*  In  Gen.  vii,  11,  compared  with  viii,  3,  4,  we  see 
one  hundred  and  fifty  days  are  equal  to  five  months. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  171 

were  obliged  to  be  at  Jerusalem  at  the  great 
feasts  of  the  passover,  pentecost,  and  taberna- 
cles, and  the  women  were  permitted  to.  come 
too.  The  concourse  was  then  very  great ; 
everybody  dressed  and  adorned  themselves 
in  their  best  clothes.  They  had  the  pleasure 
of  seeing  all  their  friends  and  relations  :  they 
assisted  at  the  prayers  and  sacrifices,  which 
were  always  accompanied  with  music  ;  after 
that  followed  the  feasts,  in  which  they  ate  the 
peace-offerings  in  this  magnificent  temple.  The 
law  itself  commanded  them  to  rejoice,  and  join 
sensible  mirth  to  spiritual. 

We  must  not  wonder,  therefore,  if  it  was 
agreeable  news  to  hear  that  a  feast  was  nigh, 
and  that  they  were  soon  to  go  to  the  house  of 
the  Lord  ;  that  they  esteemed  those  happy 
that  spent  their  life  there,  Psa.  cxxii,  1  ; 
Ixxxiv.  1,  &c. ;  that  they  went  thither  in  great 
troops,  singing  and  playing  on  instruments, 
and  that,  on  the  contrary,  they  thought  them- 
selves unhappy  when  they  could  not  be  there, 
which  David  so  often  laments  in  his  exile. 
Psa.  xlii,  4  ;  xliii,  4. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Their   Fasts  and  Vows. 

Fasting  days  were  quite  the  reverse  of  fes- 
tivals. Upon  those  they  did  all  that  I  have  re- 
lated in  speaking  of  mourning  :  for  fasting  and 
mourning  with  them  were  the  same  thing.     It 


172  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

did  not  consist  therefore  only  in  eating  later, 
but  being  afflicted  in  all  respects.  They  spent 
the  whole  day  without  eating  or  drinking 
till  night.  Isaiah  lviii,  5.  Thus  the  Jews 
still  fast,  and  the  Mohammedans,  who  herein 
imitate  both  them  and  the  primitive  Christians. 
(See  an  enumeration  of  the  fasts  of  the  Hindoos 
and  Mohammedans  at  the  end  of  this  chapter.) 
They  observed  a  strict  silence,  put  on  sack- 
cloth and  ashes,  and  expressed  every  other 
sign  of  affliction.  The  public  fasts  were  pro- 
claimed  by  sound  of  trumpet,  as  well  as  the 
feasts  :  1  Kings  xxi,  12  ;  Joel  ii,  15,  16,  &c.  : 
all  the  people  at  Jerusalem  met  together  in  the 
temple,  and  at  other  places  in  the  public 
square  :  they  read  lessons  out  of  the  law,  and 
the  most  venerable  old  men  exhorted  the  peo- 
ple to  confess  their  sins  and  repent  of  them. 
They  never  married  upon  those  days  :  such  as 
were  already  married  separated  themselves 
from  their  wives. 

The  law  had  appointed  but  one  fast  day,  the 
tenth  of  the  seventh  month,  which  was  the  feast 
of  atonement:  Lev.  xvi,  29,  &c.  :  but  from  the 
time  of  the  Prophet  Zechariah  they  reckoned 
three  more ;  one  in  the  fourth  month,  one 
in  the  fifth,  and  another  in  the  tenth.  Zech. 
viii,  19.  They  had  extraordinary  fasts  ;  some 
in  public  calamities,  as  the  dearth  which  Joel 
speaks  of;  others  upon  particular  misfortunes, 
as  David's  fast  for  the  sickness  of  his  child,  that 
was  the  offspring  of  his  great  crime,  2  Sam. 
xii,  16 :  for    the  death  of  Abner,  2  Sam.  iii, 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  173 

31,  and  upon  many  other  occasions  mentioned 
in  the  Psalms,  xxxv,  13,  14  ;  lxix,  10  11.  In 
fine,  they  had  fasts  which  they  imposed  upon 
themselves  out  of  pure  devotion,  or  to  perform 
some  vow  ;  for  they  were  very  strict  in  keeping 
their  vows  and  oaths.  As  to  vows,  the  instance 
of  Jephthah  is  hut  too  convincing,  Judg.  xi,  35  ; 
and  for  oaths,  Joshua  kept  the  promise  he  made 
to  the  Gihconites,  Josh,  ix,  19,  though  it  was 
obtained  by  a  manifest  fraud,  because  he  had 
sworn  to  them  by  the  name  of  the  Lord.  Saul 
had  resolved  to  put  Jonathan  to  death  for 
transgressing  the  order  he  had  made  with  an 
oath,  1  Sam.  xiv,  27,  though  Jonathan  offended 
only  through  ignorance  ;  and  we  see  many 
more  examples  of  it.  They  entered  into  such 
solemn  engagements  very  seriously,  and  did  not 
allow  themselves  any  latitude  in  interpreting 
them.  Swearing  by  the  name  of  God  was  an 
act  of  religion,  Psa.  Ixiii,  11  ;  for  this  oath  dis- 
tinguished the  Israelites  from  those  that  swore 
by  the  name  of  false  gods;  this  is  to  be  under- 
stood of  lawful  and  necessary  oaths,  such  as  arc 
taken  in  a  court  of  judicature. 

Their  vows  consisted  usually  in  offering  some 
part  of  their  substance  to  God,  either  for  his 
service  in  sacrifices,  or  to  be  set  apart  by 
itself.  Thence  came  those  great  treasures  in 
Solomon's  temple,  which  were  made  up  of  the 
offerings  of  David,  Samuel,  Saul,  Abner,  and 
Joab.  1  Chron.  xxvi,  27.  It  was  chiefly  of 
the  booty  taken  from  enemies.  The  Gentiles 
made  such  offerings  in  the  temples  of  their  false 


174  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

gods  sometimes  upon  other  occasions :  we 
need  no  other  example  than  the  temple  of 
Delphi,  and  the  rich  presents  that  Croesus  sent 
to  obtain  favourable  oracles.  (Herodot.  1.  i, 
p.  21,  22.) 

The  most  considerable  vow  was  that  of  the 
Nazarites,  who  obliged  themselves  for  so  long 
a  time  to  drink  no  wine  nor  strong  drink,  nor 
to  cut  their  hair,  and  to  keep  themselves  care- 
fully from  all  legal  impurities,  particularly  from 
coming  near  dead  bodies.  Num.  vi,  1-21. 
The  rule  of  the  Rechabites  seems  to  be  founded 
upon  such  vows.  The  author  of  it  was  Jona- 
dab  the  son  of  Rechab,  2  Kings  x,  15, 
who  lived  in  the  time  of  Jehu,  king  of  Israel, 
and  the  Prophet  Elisha.  He  forbade  his 
children  to  drink  wine,  build  houses,  to  plant,  to 
have  lands,  or  vineyards.  Jer.  xxxv,  6.  They 
abode,  therefore,  under  tents,  employing  them, 
selves  in  all  probability  as  the  Levites  did  in 
breeding  cattle,  and  exactly  imitating  the  pas- 
toral  life  of  the  patriarchs  ;  they  were  married, 
and  inviolably  observed  this  rule  in  their 
family,  at  least  one  hundred  and  eighty  years, 
for  we  cannot  tell  what  became  of  them  after 
the  captivity. 


A    SUPPLEMENT    TO    CHAPTER    XVII. 

Concerning  the  Fasts  of  the  Hindoos  and  Moham- 
medans. 

As  the  Hindoos  and  Mohammedans  approach 
nearest  in  their  religious  austerities  to  the  an- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  175 

cient  Hebrews,  the  following  concise  view  of 
the  fasts  practised  among  them,  taken  from  the 
best  authorities,  will  not  be  considered  an  un- 
profitable digression  in  this  place. 

There  are  twelve  kinds  of  fasts  among  the 
Hindoos. 

1st.  The  person  neither  eats  nor  drinks  for 
a  day  and  night.  This  fast  is  indispensable, 
and  occurs  twenty. nine  times  in  the  year. 

2d.  The  person  fasts  during  the  day,  and 
eats  at  night. 

3d.  The  person  eats  nothing  but  fruits,  and 
drinks  milk  or  water. 

4th.  He  eats  once  during  the  dav  and  night. 
5th.  Eats  one  particular  kind  of  food  during 
the  day  and  night,  but  as  often  as  he  pleases. 
6th.  Called  chanderaym,  which  is  to  eat  one 
mouthful  only  on  the  first  day,  two  on  the  se- 
cond, and  thus  continue  increasing  one  mouth- 
ful every  day  for  a  month,  and  then  decreasing 
one  mouthful  every  day  till  he  leaves  off  where 
he  began. 

7th.  The  person  neither  eats  nor  drinks  for 
twelve  days.     How   such  a  fast  can  be  sup- 
ported I  cannot  tell.     Though  it  is  prescribed 
in  their  law,  it  is  not  likely  that  it  is  ever  ob 
served,  at  least  rigidly. 

8th.  Lasts  twelve  days  :  the  first  three  days 
he  eats  a  little  once  in  the  day  ;  the  next  three 
he  eats  only  once  in  the  night ;  the  next  three 
he  eats  nothing,  unless  it  be  brought  to  him  ; 
and  during  the  last  three  days  he  neither  eats 
nor  drinks. 


176  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

9th.  Lasts  fifteen  days  :  for  three  days  and 
three  nights  he  eats  only  one  handful  at  night ; 
the  next  three  days  and  nights  he  eats  one 
handful  if  it  be  brought  to  him;  if  not,  he  takes 
nothing.  Then  he  eats  nothing  for  three  days 
and  three  nights.  The  next  three  days  and 
nights  he  takes  only  a  handful  of  warm  water 
each  day.  The  next  three  days  and  nights  he 
takes  only  a  handful  of  warm  milk  each  day. 

10th.  For  three  days  and  nights  he  neither 
eats  nor  drinks  :  he  lights  a  fire  and  sits  at  a 
door  where  there  enters  a  hot  wind,  which  he 
draws  in  with  his  breath. 

11th.  Lasts  fourteen  days  :  three  days  and 
three  nights  he  eats  nothing  but  leaves  ;  three 
days  and  three  nights  nothing  but  the  Indian 
fig ;  three  days  and  three  nights  nothing  but 
the  seed  of  the  lotus  ;  three  days  and  three 
nights  nothing  but  peepul  leaves  ;  three  days 
and  three  nights  the  expressed  juice  of  a  par- 
ticular kind  of  grass  called  doobah. 

12th.  Lasts  a  week  :  1st  day  he  eats  milk  ; 
2d,  milk  curds  ;  3d,  ghee,  i.  e.,  clarified  butter  ; 
4th,  cow's  urine  ;  5th,  cow's  dung  ;  6th,  water ; 
7th,  nothing  ;  plays  no  game  ;  has  no  connec- 
tion with  women  ;  neither  shaves  nor  anoints 
himself,  and  bestows  alms  each  day. — Ayeen 
Akbery,  vol.  iii,  pp.  247-250. 


Mohammedan  Fasts. 

Fasting  is  considered  by  the  'Mohammedans 
as  an  essential  part  of  piety.     Their  orthodox 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  177 

divines  term  it  the  gate  of  religion :  with  them 
it  is  of  two  kinds,  voluntary  and  incumbent ;  and 
it  is  distinguished  by  the  Mosliman  doctors  into 
three    degrees  :     1st.    Abstinence    from    every 
kind    of  nourishment    or    carnal    indulgence. 
2d.  Restraining  the  various  members  from  every 
thing  which  might  excite  sinful  or  corrupt  de- 
sires.    3d.  The   abstracting   the  mind  wholly 
from   worldly  cares,   and  fixing  it  exclusively 
upon  God.     Their  great  annual  fast  is  kept  on 
the  month  Ramzan,  beginning  at  the  first  new 
moon,  and  continuing  until  the  appearance  of 
the  next  ;  during  which  it  is  required  to  abstain 
from  every  kind  of  nourishment  from  daybreak 
till  after  sunset  of  each  day.      From  this  ob- 
servance  none   are  excused  but  the  sick,  the 
aged,  and   children.    But   if  the  sick  recover, 
they  are  required   to  make  up  for  what   they 
have  lost,  by  fasting  an  equal  number  of  days 
after  their  health  is  perfectly  restored.     This  is 
properly  the  Mohammedan  Lent.     Any  breach 
of  the  duty  of  fasting,  especially  in  the  month 
Ramzan,  must  be  expiated  by  a  donation  of 
alms  to  the  poor. 

The  Nijl  or  voluntary  fasts  are  those  not  en- 
joined by  the  law,  but  which  a  man  imposes  on 
himself  for  some  particular  reason.  They  are 
often  sufficiently  severe.  All  fasting  is  con- 
sidered in  the  light  of  making  atonement  for 
sin.  The  common  sense  of  all  nations  agree- 
ing in  this,  that  sin  requires  an  expiation  :  but 
the  Christian  religion  alone  shows  the  true 
one. — See  Hedayah,  Prel.  Dis.,  p.  55. 

12 


178  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Their  Prophets. 

Another  sort  of  religious  people,  and  much 
more  considerable  (than  the  Rechabites)  were 
the  prophets.  There  was  a  great  number  of 
them  from  Samuel's  time  :  witness  that  com- 
pany which  Saul  met,  who  prophesied  at  the 
sound  of  instruments,  transported  by  the  Spirit 
of  God,  1  Sam.  x,  5  ;  and  that  other  company 
which  prophesied  before  Samuel,  and  seem  to 
have  been  his  disciples.  1  Sam.  xix,  20.  But 
it  does  not  appear  that  there  ever  were  so  many 
as  from  the  days  of  Elijah  and  Elisha  to  the 
Babylonish  captivity.  They  lived  separate 
from  the  world,  distinguished  by  their  habit  and 
way  of  living ;  they  dwelt  upon  mountains,  as 
Elijah  and  Elisha  did  uponCarmel  and  Gilgal. 
The  rich  woman  who  lodged  Elisha  when  he 
went  by  Shunem  had  a  chamber,  as  I  said, 
built  and  furnished  for  him,  2  Kings  iv,  10, 
where  he  lived  so  retired  that  he  did  not  speak 
so  much  as  to  the  person  who  entertained  him, 
but  made  his  servant  Gehazi  speak  to  her  for 
him  :  and  when  she  came  to  entreat  him  to 
raise  her  son  to  life  again,  Gehazi  would  not 
let  her  touch  the  prophet's  feet.  2  Kings  iv, 
27.  When  Naaman,  general  of  the  Syrian 
armies,  came  to  him  to  be  cured  of  his  leprosy, 
he  sent  him  word  what  to  do,  without  being 
seen  by  him.     2  Kings  v,  10. 

Two  other  of  this  prophet's  miracles  show 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  179 

that  his  disciples  lived  in  societies  ;  that  of  the 
herb  pottage  which  he  made  wholesome,  and 
that  of  the  barley  bread  which  he  multiplied, 
2  Kings  iv,  38,  41,  43,  44  ;  which  shows  also 
the  plainness  of  their  food.  There  were  a  hun- 
dred prophets  that  lived  together  in  this  society, 
and  they  wrought  with  their  hands  ;  for,  find- 
ing their  lodgings  too  strait,  they  went  them- 
selves to  cut  down  wood  to  build  with,  and  were 
so  poor  that  one  of  them  was  obliged  to  borrow 
a  hatchet.     2  Kings  vi,  5. 

Their  dress  was  sackcloth  or  haircloth,  that 
is  mourning,  to  show  they  were  always  in  af- 
fliction for  the  sins  of  the  people.  Thus  to  de- 
scribe Elijah,  they  said  he  was  a  man  clothed 
in  a  hairy  garment,  and  girt  with  a  girdle  of 
leather  about  his  loins.  2  Kings  i,  8.  Thus, 
when  God  bids  Isaiah  undress  himself,  he  orders 
him  to  loose  his  sackcloth  from  off  his  loins. 
Isa.  xx,  2.  It  appears  that  the  two  great  pro- 
phets mentioned  in  the  Revelation  were  both 
clothed  in  sackcloth.     Rev.  xi,  3. 

The  prophets,  at  least  some  of  them,  were 
nevertheless  married  men  ;  and  that  widow 
whose  oil  Elisha  multiplied  was  a  prophet's 
widow.  2  Kings  iv,  1.  It  seems  also  as  if  their 
children  followed  the  same  profession,  for  the 
prophets  are  often  called  sons  of  the  prophets ; 
which  made  Amos  say,  "  I  was  no  prophet, 
nor  prophet's  son,  but  only  a  herdsman,"  Amos 
vii,  14  ;  to  show  that  he  did  not  prophesy  by 
profession,  but  by  an  extraordinary  call.  For 
though  God  most  frequently  made  use  of  such 


180  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

as  led  a  prophetic  life  to  declare  his  will,  yet  he 
was  under  no  obligation  not  to  make  revelations 
to  any  one  else. 

Yet  commonly  none  were  reckoned  prophets 
but  such  as  led  that  sort  of  life  ;  whence  it 
comes  that  the  writings  of  David,  Solomon,  and 
Daniel,  are  not  put  by  the  Jews  among  the 
prophetic  books,  Ecclus.  xlix,  10,  because  the 
two  first  were  kings,  living  delicately  and  mag- 
nificently ;  and  the  other  a  Persian  governor, 
who  also  lived  at  court,  and  in  the  hurry  of  the 
world  :  but  this  distinction  is  not  attended  to 
by  our  Lord,  who  expressly  calls  Daniel  a  pro- 
phet.    Matt,  xxiv,  15. 

These  holy  men,  after  the  patriarchs,  pre- 
served the  purest  tradition  of  the  true  religion  : 
their  employment  was  meditating  upon  the  law 
of  God,  praying  to  him  often  day  and  night, 
both  for  themselves  and  others,  and  inuring 
themselves  to  the  practice  of  every  virtue.  They 
instructed  their  disciples,  explained  to  them  the 
spirit  and  meaning  of  the  law,  and  opened  to 
them  the  sublime  mysteries  relating  to  the  state 
of  the  church,  either  upon  earth  or  in  heaven, 
after  the  Messiah  should  come,  that  were  hid- 
den under  allegories  of  things  sensible  and 
seemingly  mean.  They  instructed  the  people, 
too,  who  came  to  hear  them  upon  Sabbath  and 
other  feast  days.  They"  reproved  them  for 
their  vices,  and  exhorted  them  to  repent,  often 
foretelling,  from  God,  what  was  to  happen  to 
them.  1  Kings  xxi,  20.  This  liberty  which 
they  took  of  speaking  the  most  disagreeable 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  181 

truths,   even  to  kings,  made  them   hated,  and 
cost  many  of  them  their  lives. 

However,  there  were  many  impostors,  who 
counterfeited  the  outward  demeanour  of  true 
prophets  ;  wore  sackcloth  as  they  did  ;  spake 
the  same  language,  pretending  they  were  also 
inspired  by  God,  Zech.  xiii,  4  ;  but  they  took 
care  not  to  foretell  any  thing  that  would  be 
disagreeable  either  to  the  prince  or  the  people. 
The  false  gods  also  had  their  prophets,  as  the 
eight  hundred  and  fifty  whom  Elijah  caused  to 
be  slain.  1  Kings  xviii,  19  and  40.  Of  the 
same  sort  were  the  soothsayers  among  the 
Greeks,  who  were  called  mantcis  /lavrei^,  as 
Calchas  and  Tiresias  in  the  times  of  the  heroes : 
such  likewise  were  they  that  gave  out  oracles, 
or  made  money  of  them,  and  the  poets,  who 
said  they  also  were  inspired  by  the  gods.  For 
they  did  not  mean  to  have  it  thought  that  they 
said  so  only  in  a  poetical  manner,  but  to  make 
it  believed  that  they  really  were  :  and,  in  fact, 
these  false  prophets,  either  by  the  operation  of 
the  devil,  or  some  artifice,  became  transported, 
and  spake  in  an  unusual  style,  to  imitate  the 
visible  effects  which  the  Spirit  of  God  caused 
in  the  true  prophets.  Now  those  Israelites  that 
were  not  thoroughly  confirmed  in  their  religion 
lay  under  great  temptations  to  consult  these 
diviners  and  false  oracles,  and  it  was  a  part  of 
idolatry  which  they  were  very  subject  to  fall 
into,  during  the  whole  period  of  which  we  speak. 


182  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


*  CHAPTER  XIX. 

Their  Idolatry.* 

This  propensity  to  idolatry  appears  to  us 
very  strange  and  absurd  in  the  manners  of  the 
Israelites  ;  and  hence  many  have  imagined 
that  they  were  a  brutish  and  unpolished  people. 
We  see  no  idolaters  now  ;  we  only  hear  it  said 
that  there  are  some  in  the  Indies,  and  in  other 
remote  countries. 

But  all  people  that  live  about  us,  Christians, 
Jews,  and  Mohammedans,  preach  one  only  God 
Almighty.  The  most  ignorant  country  people 
know  this  truth  distinctly  ;  we  conclude,  there- 
fore^  that  such  as  believed  in  more  gods  than 
one,  and  adored  pieces  of  wood  and  stone,  ought 
to  be  accounted  the  most  ignorant  of  mankind, 
and  perfect  barbarians.  However,  we  cannot 
call  the  Romans,  Greeks,  Egyptians,  Syrians, 
and  other  people  of  antiquity,  ignorant  and  bar- 
barians, from  whom  all  arts,  human  learning,  and 
politeness  have  been  handed  down  to  us  :  neither 
can  we  deny  that  idolatry  reigned  among  them 
in  the  most  absolute  manner,  at  the  very  time 
when  in  every  thing  else  they  were  perfectly 
ingenious  and  polite.  Let  us  stop  here  then  a 
little,  and  search  into  the  source  of  this  evil. 

The  mind  of  man  is  so  overcast  since  the 

*  On  the  origin  and  progress  of  idolatry,  see 
Maimonidcs  de  idolatria,  cum  inter prelatione  et  notis 
Dlonysii  Vossii,  4to.,  Amst.  1642,  which  contains  a 
great  variety  of  curious  matter. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  183 

fall  that,  while  he  continues  in  the  state  of  cor- 
rupted nature,  he  has  no  notion  of  spiritual 
things  ;  he  thinks  of  nothing  but  matter  and 
corporeal  subjects,  and  makes  light  of  whatso- 
ever does  not  fall  within  the  compass  of  his 
senses ;  nor  does  any  thing  appear  even  sub- 
stantial to  him,  but  what  strikes  the  grossest 
of  them,  the  taste  and  touch  :  we  see  it  too 
plainly  in  children,  and  men  that  are  guided  by 
their  passions  ;  they  make  no  account  of  any 
thing  but  what  they  can  see  and  feel  :  every 
thing  else  they  look  upon  as  castles  in  the  air. 
Yet  these  men  are  brought  up  in  the  true  reli- 
gion, in  the  knowledge  of  God,  in  a  belief  of 
the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  a  future  state. 
What  sentiments  had  the  ancient  Gentiles, 
who  never  heard  these  things  mentioned,  and 
had  only  objects  of  sense  and  matter  laid  before 
them  by  their  wisest  men  ?  We  may  read 
Homer,  the  great  divine  and  prophet  of  the 
Greeks,  as  long  as  we  please  ;  we  shall  not 
find  there  the  least  hint  that  can  induce  us  to 
imagine  he  had  any  notion  of  things  spiritual 
and  incorporeal. 

Thus  all  their  wisdom  was  employed  in  what 
relates  to  the  body  and  senses.  The  design  c  f 
their  bodily  exercises,  and  all  that  gymnastic 
regimen  which  they  made  so  much  noise  about, 
was  to  preserve  and  increase  their  health, 
strength,  dexterity,  and  beauty  ;  and  they  car- 
ried that  art  to  the  utmost  perfection.  Paint- 
ing, sculpture,  and  architecture  delight  the 
eyes ;  and  they  had  advanced  them  to  such  a 


184  MANNERS   OF  THE  ISRAELITES. 

pitch,  that  their  villas,  cities,  and  whole  coun. 
try  were  full  of  entertaining  objects,  as  we  see 
by  the  descriptions  of  Pausanias.  They  ex. 
celled  also  in  music  ;  and  though  poetry  seems 
to  strike  deeper  than  the  senses,  it  reaches  no 
farther  than  the  imagination,  which  has  the 
same  objects,  and  produces  the  like  effects. 
Their  laws,  and  most  ancient  rules  of  morality, 
all  relate  to  the  senses  ;  providing  that  their 
lands  should  be  well  cultivated,  that  each  par- 
ticular person  should  have  enough  to  live  com- 
fortably  upon,  that  men  should  marry  healthy 
and  fruitful  wives,  that  children  should  be  edu* 
cated  so  as  to  have  strong  constitutions,  and 
be  fit  for  war  ;  and  that  every  body  should  be 
protected  from  being  injured,  either  by  strangers 
or  bad  neighbours. 

They  studied  the  good  of  the  soul  so  little 
that  they  depraved  it  extremely  by  the  too  great 
care  they  took  in  improving  the  body.  It  was 
of  dangerous  consequence  to  expose  statues  and 
pictures,  even  the  most  obscene,  in  every  part 
naked  and  uncovered  :  and  the  danger  was  still 
greater  to  painters  and  sculptors,  who  copied 
from  the  life.  No  matter,  there  was  a  neces- 
sity for  gratifying  the  lust  of  the  eyes.  It  is 
well  known  at  what  a  degree  of  debauchery 
the  Greeks  were  arrived  by  these  fine  customs: 
they  practised  the  most  abominable  lewdness, 
and  not  only  practised,  but  held  it  in  esteem. 
Their  music  and  poetry,  likewise  fomenting  the 
same  vices,  both  excited  and  kept  up  jealousies 
and  mortal  hatred  between  the  poets,  the  actors, 


MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  185 

and  spectators  ;  and  particular  characters  were 
cruelly  slandered  and  pulled  in  pieces  ;  but  this 
never  gave  them  any  concern,  provided  the 
spectacles  were  diverting,  and  the  songs  such 
as  entertained  them. 

The  same  may  be  said  of  their  religion  :  in- 
stead  of  improving,  it  was  prejudicial  to  their 
morals.  Now  the  rise  of  all  these  evils  was 
man's  forgetting  himself  and  his  spiritual  na- 
ture. All  mankind  had  preserved  a  constant 
tradition  that  there  was  a  nature  more  excel- 
lent than  the  human,  capable  of  doing  them 
good  or  harm  ;  and  being  acquainted  with  none 
but  corporeal  beings,  they  would  persuade 
themselves  that  this  nature,  that  is,  the  divi- 
nity, was  so  too  :  and,  consequently,  that  there 
•were  many  gods,  that  every  part  of  the  creation 
might  have  some,  and  that  each  nation,  city, 
and  family  had  deities  peculiar  to  itself.  They 
fancied  they  were  immortal,  and,  to  make  them 
happy,  attributed  to  them  all  sorts  of  pleasures, 
(without  which  they  thought  there  could  be  no 
true  felicity,)  and  even  the  most  shameful  de- 
baucheries :  which,  afterward,  again  served  to 
countenance  their  own  passions  by  the  example 
of  their  gods.  They  were  not  content  with 
imagining  them  either  in  heaven  or  upon  earth  : 
they  must  see  them  and  touch  them  :  for  which 
reason  they  honoured  idols  as  much  as  the  gods 
themselves,  conceiving  that  they  were  united 
and  incorporated  with  them :  and  they  ho- 
noured these  statues  so  much  the  more  for 
their  beauty,  or  antiquity,  or   any  other  sin- 


136  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

gularity  they  had  to  recommend  them.      Wis- 
dom xiii,  10. 

Their  worship  was  of  a  piece  with  their  be- 
lief. Wisdom  xiv,  27-29.  It  was  wholly 
founded  upon  two  passions,  the  love  of  pleasure 
and  the  fear  of  coming  to  any  outward  harm. 
Their  sacrifices  were  always  accompanied  with 
feasts,  and  music,  and  dancing.  Comedy  and 
tragedy  had  their  rise  from  their  merrymakings 
after  vintage  in  honour  of  Bacchus.  (Tertull. 
de  Spect.  August.  2  de  Civ.  Dei.)  The  Olym- 
pic games  and  other  trials  of  skill,  so  much 
celebrated  in  history,  were  instituted  in  honour 
of  their  gods.  In  short,  all  the  Grecian  shows 
were  acts  of  religion,  and  it  was  a  piece  of  de- 
votion, in  their  way,  to  assist  at  the  most  scan- 
dalous of  Aristophanes'  comedies.  Thus,  their 
chief  business  in  time  of  peace  was  taking  care 
of  the  sacred  combats  and  theatrical  shows  ; 
and  often  in  time  of  war  they  were  more  atten- 
tive to  these  things,  and  at  greater  expense 
about  them,  than  in  the  war  itself.  (Demosth. 
Philipp.  5.) 

Their  religion  then  was  not  a  doctrine  of 
morality,  like  the  true  religion  ;  (August,  de 
vera  Relig.  in  init.  ;)  they  reckoned  him  a  saint 
that  was  neither  murderer,  traitor,  nor  guilty 
of  perjury;  who  avoided  the  company  of  those 
that  had  committed  such  crimes,  who  kept  up 
the  rights  of  hospitality  and  places  of  refuge, 
who  faithfully  performed  his  vows,  and  gave 
liberally  toward  sacrifices  and  public  shows. 
Religion  was  looked  upon  as  a  trade  ;  (Plato 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  187 

Eutyphron. ;)  they  made  offerings  to  the  gods, 
that  they  might  obtain  what  they  desired  in 
their  prayers.  As  to  any  thing  else,  debauch- 
ery did  not  offend  it  at  all.  Apuleius,  after  all 
the  villanous  actions  with  which  he  fills  his  me- 
tamorphosis, concludes  with  a  description  of 
his  devotions,  (Apul.  1.  i,)  that  is,  how  officious 
he  was  to  get  himself  initiated  into  all  sorts  of 
mysteries,  and  how  exact  in  observing  all  the 
ceremonies  of  them.  Debauchery  was  so  far 
from  being  condemned  by  religion,  that  it  was 
sometimes  enjoined  :  there  was  no  celebrating 
the  Bacchanal  feasts  in  a  proper  manner  with- 
out getting  drunk,  (Clem.  Alex,  in  protrept.,) 
and  there  were  women  that  prostituted  them- 
selves in  honour  of  Venus,  particularly  at  Co- 
rinth. It  is  well  known  what  the  god  of  gar- 
dens and  the  mysteries  of  Ceres  and  Cybele 
were. 

Thus  they  honoured  the  gods  whom  they 
thought  kind  and  beneficent.  But  for  the  in- 
fernal deities,  Hecate,  the  Eumenidcs,  or  Furies, 
the  Parcas,  or  Destinies,  and  others,  with  the 
stories  of  whom  they  were  terrified,  they  were 
to  be  appeased  with  nocturnal  sacrifices  and 
frightful  inhuman  ceremonies.  Some  buried 
men  alive;  others  sacrificed  children,  and  some- 
times their  own  :  (Wisd.  xiv,  23  :)  as  the  wor- 
shippers of  Moloch,  mentioned  with  so  much 
detestation  in  Scripture,  who  still  kept  up  this 
abominable  custom  in  Africa  in  Tertullian's 
time.     (Tertull.  Apol.  c.  9.) 

To  this  fear  and  dread  were  owing  all  the  rest 


188  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  their  cruel  and  troublesome  superstitions  ; 
as  letting  themselves  blood  with  lancets,  or  cut- 
ting themselves  with  knives,  as  the  false  pro- 
phets of  Baal  and  the  priests  of  Cybele  did,  1 
Kings  xviii,  28  ;  as  their  fasting,  and  bathing 
in  cold  water,*  and  other  such  things.  They 
thought  thereby  to  avert  particular  evils  or 
public  calamities,  with  which  they  were  threat- 
ened in  dreams  and  prodigies,  according  to  the 
interpretation  of  their  soothsayers.  These 
were  the  remedies  by  which  they  imagined 
they  could  prevent  sickness,  plague,  hail,  and 
famine.  For  upon  such  occasions,  mankind  is 
apt  rather  to  do  things  that  are  of  no  use  at  all, 
than  to  omit  any  thing  that  may  be  thought 
serviceable.  All  their  lustrations  or  expiations 
for  crimes  were  troublesome  superstitions  of 
this  sort :  they  consisted  in  purifying  the  body 
by  water  or  fire,  and  performing  certain  sacri- 
fices ;  but  there  was  no  mention  of  either  re- 
pentance or  conversion. 

It  will  seem  strange,  perhaps,  that  people  so 
wise  as  the  Grecians  should  be  led  away  by 
such  gross  superstitions,  and  so  easily  suffer 
themselves  to  be  imposed  upon  by  astrologers, 

*  Jupiter,  ingentes  qui  das  adimisque  dolores, 
Frigida  si  puerum  quartana  reliquerit  ;  illo 
Man6  die,  quo  tu  indicis  jejunia,  nudus 
In  Tiberi  stabit. 

Hor.  lib.  ii5  Sat.  iii,  288-292. 
O  Jupiter,  thou  who  inflictest  and  removest  great 

calamities, 
If  this  shivering  ague  shall  leave  my  son, 
He  shall  stand  naked  in  the  Tiber  on  the  morning  of  thy 
fast  day. 


manners  of  the    Israelites.  189 

divines,  soothsayers,  and  many  other  sorts  of 
conjurers.  But  it  must  be  considered  that,  till 
Alexander's  time,  and  the  reign  of  the  Mace, 
donians,  they  had  made  no  great  progress 
in  such  learning  as  might  cure  them  of  super- 
stition. They  excelled  in  arts ;  their  laws 
were  wise  :  in  a  word,  they  had  brought  every 
thing  to  perfection  that  makes  life  easy  and 
agreeable :  but  they  took  little  pains  in  the 
speculative  sciences,  geometry,  astronomy,  and 
physics.  The  anatomy  of  plants  and  animals, 
the  knowledge  of  minerals  and  meteors,  the 
form  of  the  earth,  the  course  of  the  planets,  and 
the  whole  system  of  the  world,  were  still 
mysteries  to  them. 

The  Chaldeans  and  Egyptians,  who  already 
'knew  something  of  them,  kept  it  a  great  secret, 
and  never  spoke  of  them  but  in  riddles,  with 
which  they  mixed  an  infinite  number  of  super- 
stitions and  fables. 

As  these  sciences  depend  chiefly  upon  ex- 
perience, a  succession  of  ages  always  improves 
them,  and  they  are  at  present  in  the  greatest 
perfection  they  ever  were.  They  are  taught 
openly  to  any  one  that  will  apply  himself  to 
them  ;  and  they  agree  perfectly  with  our  holy 
religion,  which  condemns  all  superstition, 
divination,  and  magic ;  however,  we  find  but 
too  many  that  give  ear  to  astrologers  and  such 
impostors,  not  only  peasants  and  ignorant  peo- 
ple of  the  lowest  sort,  but  ladies  that  value 
themselves  upon  their  wit,  politeness,  and 
knowledge ;    and    men   that,  notwithstanding 


190  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

they  have  had  a  good  education,  set  up  for  free- 
thinkers, and  cannot  possibly  submit  to  the 
dictates  of  true  religion. 

What  then  must  be  the  case  when  all  this 
nonsense  made  a  part  of  religion  ;  when  con- 
jurers  were  taken  for  men  really  inspired ; 
when  astrology,  pyromancy,  necromancy,  and 
such  knaveries  were  esteemed  divine  know- 
ledge ?  How  was  it  possible  to  resist  the  au- 
thority of  the  priests,  who  gravely  recounted 
an  infinite  series  of  proofs  in  confirmation  of 
their  doctrine,  and  were  implicitly  obeyed  by 
whole  nations?  They  could  not  help  believing 
them  when  they  did  not  know  how  to  account 
for  these  things  in  a  philosophical  manner  ;  and 
if  they  had  known,  they  must  have  been  very 
bold  to  have  contradicted  them.* 

A  proneness  to  idolatry  was  not,  therefore, 
peculiar  to  the  Israelites.  It  was  a  general 
evil  ;  and  the  hardness  of  heart  with  which  the 
Scripture  so  often  reproaches  them,  is  not-  for 
their  being  more  attached  to  earthly  things  than 
other  people,  but  for  being  so  much  as  they  were, 

*  The  intelligent  abbe  had  no  doubt  the  case  of 
Galileo  in  view  when  he  wrote  the  above.  This 
great  philosopher,  for  asserting  the  true  system  of  the 
world,  was  twice  imprisoned  by  the  holy  infallible  in- 
quisition,  in  1G12  and  1632;  obliged  to  renounce  his 
heretical  opinions,  and  not  to  defend  them  by  word  or 
writing  ;  Avas  condemned  to  imprisonment  during 
pleasure,  and  to  repeat  the  seven  penitential  psalms 
once  a  week  ;  and  his  books  being  condemned  also, 
were  publicly  burned  at  Rome  !  The  doctrine  for 
which  he  was  persecuted  is  now  believed  by  the  pope 
and  all  his  conclave  ! 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  191 

after  having  received  such  particular  favours 
from  the  hand  of  God,  and  seen  the  great  won- 
ders that  he  had  wrought  for  them.  It  is  true 
much  resolution  was  necessary  to  resist  the  in- 
fluence of  the  bad  example  of  all  other  nations. 
When  an  Israelite  was  out  of  his  own  country, 
and  among  infidels,  they  reproached  him  with 
Laving  no  religion  at  all,  because  they  did  not 
see  him  offer  any  sacrifice,  or  worship  idols ; 
and  when  he  told  them  of  his  God,  the  creator 
of  heaven  and  earth,  they  laughed  at  him,  and 
asked  where  he  was.  These  taunts  were  hard 
to  bear  :  David  himself  says  that  when  he  was 
an  exile  "  he  fed  himself  day  and  night  with  his 
tears,"  because  they  daily  asked  him  ichcre  his 
God  was.  Psa.  xliii,  3.  Weak  minds  were 
staggered  with  these  attacks,  and  often  gave 
way  to  them. 

The  propensity  that  all  mankind  have  to 
pleasure  heightened  the  temptation  ;  as  the 
heathen  feasts  were  very  frequent  and  magnifi- 
cent, curiosity  easily  prevailed  upon  young 
people,  especially  women,  to  go  and  see  the 
pomp  of  their  processions,  the  manner  of  dress- 
ing out  the  victims,  the  dancing,  the  choirs  of 
music,  and  ornaments  of  their  temples.  Some 
officious  body  engaged  them  to  take  a  place  at 
the  feast,  and  eat  the  meat  that  was  offered  to 
idols,  or  come  and  lodge  at  his  house.  They 
made  acquaintance  and  carried  on  love  in- 
trigues, which  generally  ended  either  in  down- 
right debauchery,  or  marrying  contrary  to  the 
law.     Thus  did  idolatry  insinuate  itself  by  the 


192  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

most  common  allurements  of  women  and  good 
cheer.  In  the  time  of  Moses,  the  Israelites 
were  engaged  in  the  infamous  mysteries  of 
Baal  Peor  by  the  Midianitish  women,  Num. 
xxv,  1-3,  who  were  the  strange  women  that 
perverted  Solomon. 

Besides,  the  law  of  God  might  appear  too 
severe  to  them.  They  were  not  allowed  to 
sacrifice  in  any  place  but  one,  by  the  hands  too 
of  such  priests  only  as  were  descended  from 
Aaron,  and  according  to  some  very  strict 
rules.  They  had  but  three  great  feasts  in  the 
whole  year,  the  passover,  pentecost,  and  feast 
of  tabernacles  :  a  very  few  for  people  that  lived 
in  plenty,  and  in  a  climate  that  inclined  them 
to  pleasure  :  as  they  lived  in  the  country,  em- 
ployed in  husbandry,  they  could  not  conve- 
niently meet  together  but  at  feasts,  and  for  that 
reason  were  obliged  to  borrow  some  of  strangers, 
and  invent  others.  Do  not  we  ourselves,  who 
think  we  are  so  spiritual,  and  no  doubt  ought 
to  be  so,  if  we  were  true  Christians,  often  pre- 
fer the  possession  of  temporal  things  to  the  hope 
of  eternal  1  And  do  not  we  endeavour  to  re- 
concile many  diversions  with  the  gospel,  which 
all  antiquity  has  judged  inconsistent  with  it, 
and  against  which  our  instructers  are  daily  ex- 
claiming ?  It  is  true  we  hold  idolatry  in  de- 
testation, but  it  is  now  no  longer  a  familiar 
sight,  and  has  been  quite  out  of  fashion  above 
a  thousand  years.  We  are  not  then  to  ima- 
gine  that  the  Israelites  were  more  stupid  than 
other  people,    because    the  particular  favours 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  193 

they  had  received  from  God  could  not  reclaim 
them  from  idolatry.  But  it  must  be  owned 
that  the  wound  of  original  sin  was  very  deep, 
when  such  holy  instructions  and  repeated  mi- 
racles  were  found  insufficient  to  raise  men 
above  sensible  things.*  But  however  impure 
the  state  of  the  Israelites  may  appear,  we  see 
a  much  greater  degree  of  blindness  and  im- 
purity in  other  nations,  particularly  among  the 
Greeks  and  Egyptians ;  who  were  in  other 
respects  the  most  enlightened. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Their   Political  State,   Liberty,   and  Domestic 
Power. 

After  religion  we  must  say  something  of  the 
political  state  of  the  Israelites.  They  were  per- 
fectly free,  especially  before  they  had  kings. 
They  had  neither  homages,  nor  manors,  nor 
prohibitions  from  hunting  or  fishing  ;  nor  any 
of  those  kinds  of  dependences  which  are  so 
common  among  us,  that  lords  themselves  are 
not  exempt  from  them.  For  we  see  sovereign 
princes  that  are  vassals,  and  even  officers  under 
other  sovereigns,  as  in  Germany  and  Italy. 
They  enjoyed  therefore  that  liberty  so  highly 
valued  by  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  it  was 

*  And  here  we  may  see  the  absolute  necessity  of 
that  Holy  Spirit  which  the  gospel  has  promised,  to 
purify  the  heart  from  all  its  defilements,  to  bring  life 
and  immortality  to  light,  and  to  give  us  correct  notions 
of  that  infinitely  pure  and  holy  Being  who  is  to  be 
worshipped  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 

13 


194  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

their  own  fault  that  they  did  not  enjoy  it  for 
ever ;  it  was  God's  design  they  should,  as  ap- 
pears from  his  reproof  delivered  to  them  by 
Samuel,  when  they  asked  for  a  king,  1  Sam. 
x,  18,  &c.  :  and  Gideon  seemed  to  be  well  ap- 
prised of  it,  since,  when  they  offered  to  make 
him  king,  and  secure  the  kingdom  to  his  poste- 
rity, he  answered  generously,  "  I  will  not  rule 
over  you,  neither  shall  my  son  rule  over  you  ; 
the  Lord  shall  rule  over  you,"  Judg.  viii,  23. 

Their  government  was,  therefore,  neither  a 
monarchy,  aristocracy,  nor  democracy,  but  a 
theocracy,*   as  Josephus  calls  it ;  that  is,  God 

*  Though  they  were  guided  by  God's  peculiar 
direction,  yet  the  form  of  their  government  was  at  first 
aristocratical,  which  continued  to  be  the  basis  of  it  ever 
after.  It  commenced  from  the  death  of  Jacob,  who 
divided  them  into  twelve  tribes,  appointing  his  sons, 
with  the  two  sons  of  Joseph,  to  be  rulers  or  princes 
over  them.  Gen.  xlix.  (See  also  Exod.  vi,  4  ;  Josh, 
xxii,  14.)  No  one  tribe  had  superiority  over  another ; 
for  it  is  said,  Gen.  xlix,  16,  "  Dan  shall  judge  his  peo- 
ple," in  the  same  manner  "  as  one  of  the  tribes 
of  Israel."  And  hence  it  is,  that,  upon  the  death 
of  Joshua,  the  people  inquired  of  God,  "  who  should 
go  up  for  them  against  the  Canaanites,"  Judg.  i,  1. 
From  this  view  we  see  the  meaning  of  that  important 
prophecy,  Gen.  xlix,  10,  "  The  sceptre  shall  not  de- 
part from  Judah  till  Shiloh  come;"  not  a  sceptre,  as 
most  interpreters  understand  it,  to  rise  in  Judah's 
family  some  ages  after  the  death  of  Jacob,  which 
is  against  the  propriety  of  all  language ;  not  a 
dominion  to  be  exercised  by  Judah  over  all  the  other 
tribes,  which  it  never  obtained ;  but  that  the  govern- 
ment now  settled  in  each  of  the  tribes,  which  would 
depart  from  the  rest  long  before  the  coming  of  Shiloh, 
should  remain  with  Judah  till  Shiloh  came.  Accord- 
ingly the  Assyrian  captivity  was  ruin  to  the  ten 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  195 

himself  governed  them  immediately  by  the  law 
that  he  had  given  them.  As  long  as  they  ob- 
served it  faithfully  they  lived  in  freedom  and 
safety  ;  as  soon  as  they  transgressed  it  to  fol- 
low their  own  imaginations  they  fell  into 
anarchy  and  confusion  ;  which  the  Scripture 
shows,  when,  to  account  for  the  prodigious 
wickedness  of  the  times,  it  says,  "  In  those 
days  there  was  no  king  in  Israel,  every  one  did 
what  was  right  in  his  own  eyes,"  Judg.  xxi, 
25.  This  confusion  divided  and  weakened 
them,  and  made  them  become  a  prey  to  their 
enemies  ;  till,  recollecting  themselves,  they  re- 
turned to  God,  and  he  sent  them  some  deliverer. 
Thus  they  lived  under  the  judges,  relapsing 
time  after  time  into  idolatry  and  disobedience 
to  the  law  of  God,  Judg.  ii,  11,22;  and  con- 
sequently  into  slavery  and  confusion,  and 
as  often  repenting.  At  last  they  chose  rather 
to  have  a  master  over  them  than  to  continue 
in  freedom  by  faithfully  observing  the  law  of 
God. 

Their  liberty,  reduced  to  these  just  bounds, 
consisted  in  a  power  to  do  every  thing  that  was 
not  forbidden  by  the  law,  without  obligation  to 
do  any  more  than    it  commanded  ;  or    being 

tribes;  but  the  Babylonish  captivity  was  only  a 
seventy  years'  transportation  of  Judah  into  a  foreign 
country,  where  they  continued  under  the  heads 
and  rulers  of  their  own ;  which  privilege  they  en- 
joyed till  after  the  death  of  Christ,  and  in  some  sort 
till  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  See  this  proved  at 
large  in  the  third  incomparable  dissertation  of  the 
bishop  of  London.  E.  F. 


196  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

subject  to  the  will  of  any  particular  man  but 
the  fathers  of  families,  who  had  great  power 
over  their  servants  and  children  at  home. 
There  were  some  Hebrews  slaves  to  their  bre- 
thren ;  and  the  law  mentions  two  cases  that  re- 
duced  them  to  that  condition  :  poverty,  which 
obliged  them  to  sell  themselves,  Lev.  xxv,  39  ; 
and  commission  of  theft,  which  they  were  not 
able  to  make  amends  for.  Exod.  xxii,  3.  It 
appears  that  the  second  case  comprehended 
debts  likewise,  by  the  example  of  the  widow 
whose  oil  Elisha  multiplied,  that  she  might 
have  enough  to  pay  her  creditors,  and  save  her 
children  from  slavery.  2  Kings  iv,  1.  It  is 
true,  these  Hebrew  slaves  might  regain  their 
freedom  at  the  end  of  six  years,  that  is,  in  the 
sabbatical  year,  Exod.  xxi,  2  ;  and  if  they 
were  then  not  disposed  to  make  use  of  this 
privilege  they  might  claim  their  liberty,  and 
that  of  their  children,  in  the  jubilee  or  fiftieth 
year.  Lev.  xxv,  40.  It  was  recommended  to 
them  to  use  their  brethren  mildly,  and  rather  to 
make  slaves  of  strangers.  We  see  how  sub- 
missive their  slaves  were  to  them  by  the  words 
of  the  Psalmist :  "  As  the  eyes  of  servants  look 
unto  the  hands  of  their  masters,  even  so  our 
eyes  wait  upon  the  Lord  our  God,"  Psa. 
cxxiii,  2.  From  which  we  may  collect  that 
they  often  gave  orders  by  signs,  and  that  ser- 
vants were  to  watch  their  least  motions. 

The  Israelites  had  a  power  of  life  and  death 
over  their  slaves,  and  this  was  then  common 
to  them  with  all  nations.    For  slavery  proceeded 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  197 

from  the  right  they  acquired  by  conquest  in 
war,  (Just,  de  Jure  Pers.  §  3,)  when,  instead 
of  killing  their  enemies,  they  chose  rather  to 
give  them  their  lives  that  they  might  have  the 
use  of  them  ;  so  it  was  supposed  the  conqueror 
always  reserved  the  power  of  taking  away  their 
lives  if  they  committed  any  thing  that  deserved 
it ;  that  he  acquired  the  same  power  over  their 
children,  because  they  had  never  been  born  if 
he  had  not  spared  the  father,  and  that  he  trans* 
mitted  this  power  when  he  alienated  his  slave. 
This  is  the  foundation  of  the  absolute  power 
of  masters  ;  and  they  seldom  abused  it,  for  their 
interest  obliged  them  to  preserve  their  slaves, 
who  made  part  of  their  riches  :  which  is  the 
reason  of  the  law,  that  he  should  not  be  punished 
who  had  smote  a  servant,  if  he  continued  alive 
a  day  or  two  after.  He  is  his  money,  Exod. 
xxi,  20,  21,  says  the  law,  to  show  that  this  loss 
was  a  sufficient  punishment ;  and  one  may  pre* 
sume  in  this  case  that  the  master  only  intended 
his  correction*  But  if  the  slave  died  under  the 
strokes,  it  was  to  be  supposed  the  master  had 
a  real  design  to  kill  him  ;  for  which  the  law 
declares  him  punishable  ;  in  which  it  was  more 
merciful  than  the  laws  of  other  people,  who 
did  not  make  that  distinction.  The  Romans, 
for  more  than  five  hundred  years,  had  a  power 
to  put  their  slaves  to  death,  to  imprison  their 
debtors  upon  default  of  payment,  and  to  sell 
their  own  children  three  times  over  before  they 
were  out  of  their  power  ;  (Inst,  de  his  qui  sui 
vel  al.  §  2.  Instit.  quib.  mod.  jud.  Part.  §  6  ;) 


198  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  all  by  virtue  of  those  wise  laws  of  the  twelve 
tables  which  they  brought  from  Greece,  at  the 
time  when  the  Jews  were  restored,  after  they 
returned  from  captivity,  that  is,  about  a  thousand 
years  after  Moses. 

As  to  the  paternal  power  of  the  Hebrews,  the 
law  gave  them  leave  to  sell  their  daughters, 
Exod.  xxi,  7  ;  but  the  sale  was  a  sort  of  mar- 
riage,  as  it  was  with  the  Romans,  per  coemp- 
tionem.  We  see,  however,  by  a  passage  in 
Isaiah,  that  fathers  sold  their  children  to  their 
creditors,  Isa.  1,  1 ;  and  in  the  time  of  Nehe- 
miah  the  poor  proposed  to  sell  their  children 
for  something  to  live  upon,  and  others  bewailed 
themselves  that  they  had  not  wherewith  to  re- 
deem their  children  that  were  already  in  slavery. 
Nehem.  v,  2,  5  They  had  the  power  of  life 
and  death  over  their  children,  since  the  wise 
man  says,  "  Chasten  thy  son  while  there  is 
hope,  but  persist  not  in  it  to  cause  him  to  die," 
Prov.  xix,  18. — See  the  Hebrew,  and  the  mar- 
gin of  our  Bibles.  Indeed  they  had  not  so 
much  liberty  as  the  Romans  to  make  use  of 
this  severe  privilege  without  the  magistrate's 
knowledge.  (Liv.  lib.  ii.)  The  law  of  God 
only  permitted  the  father  and  mother,  after  they 
had  tried  all  sorts  of  correction  at  home,  to 
declare  to  the  elders  of  the  city  that  their  son 
was  stubborn  and  rebellious,  and  upon  their  com- 
plaint he  was  condemned  to  death  and  stoned. 
Deut.  xxi,  19.  The  same  law  was  pfactised 
at  Athens,  (Heliod.  i,)  and  founded  upon  chil- 
dren's lives  being  derived  from  their  parents. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  199 

and  upon  a  supposition  that  none  could  be  so 
unnatural  as  to  put  their  children  to  death,  un- 
less they  had  committed  some  horrible  crimes. 
Now  the  dread  of  this  power  was  of  great  use 
in  keeping  children  in  perfect  subjection. 

We  see  but  too  many  evils  proceed  from  re- 
laxing or  rather  taking  away  this  paternal  au- 
thority. Let  a  son  be  ever  so  young,  as  soon 
as  he  is  married,  or  knows  how  to  live  without 
his  father's  assistance,  he  thinks  he  owes  him 
no  longer  any  thing  but  a  little  respect.  Thence 
comes  the  infinite  number  of  small  families  and 
people  that  live  alone,  or  in  boarding  houses, 
where  all  are  equally  masters.  Such  young 
independent  people,  if  they  are  rich,  run  into 
debauchery  and  ruin  themselves.  If  they  are 
poor,  they  turn  vagabonds  whom  nobody  cares 
to  own,  and  are  capable  of  all  sorts  of  villany. 
Beside  the  corruption  of  manners,  this  inde- 
pendence may  also  occasion  great  disorders  in 
the  state  ;  for  it  is  much  more  difficult  to  rule 
a  multitude  of  single,  untractable  men,  than  a 
few  heads  of  families,  each  of  whom  was  re- 
sponsible for  a  great  number  of  persons,  and  was 
commonly  an  old  man  that  understood  the  laws. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

The  Authority  of  old  Men. 

Not  only  fathers,  but  all  old  men,  had  great 
authority  among  the  Israelites  and  all  the  people 


200  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  antiquity.  They  everywhere,  in  the  begin- 
ning, chose  judges  for  private  affairs,  and  coun- 
sellors for  the  public,  out  of  the  oldest  men.* 
Thence  came  the  name  of  senate  and  fathers 
at  Rome,  and  that  great  respect  for  old  age 
which  they  borrowed  from  the  Lacedemonians. 
Nothing  is  more  conformable  to  nature.  Youth 
is  only  fit  for  motion  and  action.  Old  age  is 
qualified  to  instruct,  advise,  and  command. 
"  The  glory  of  young  men  is  their  strength," 
says  Solomon,  "  and  the  beauty  of  old  men  is 
their  gray  head,"  Prov.  xx,  29.  It  is  not 
likely  that  either  study  or  good  parts  should 
make  up  for  want  of  experience  in  a  young 
man  ;  but  an  old  man,  provided  he  have  good 
natural  sense,  is  wise  by  experience  alone.  All 
history  proves  that  the  best  governed  states 
were  those  where  old  men  were  in  authority, 
and  that  the  reigns  of  princes  that  were  too 
young  have  been  most  unfortunate  ;  which  ex- 
plains what  the  wise  man  says,  "  Wo  to  thee, 
O  land,  when  thy  king  is  a  child  !"  Eccles. 
x,  16.  And  it  is  this  wo  that  God  threatens 
the  Jews  with,  when  he  tells  them,  by  Isaiah, 
that  "  he  will  give  them  children  for  princes."f 

*  Though  this  perhaps  may  be  true  of  the  original 
institution  of  the  Jewish  sanhedrim  and  Roman 
senate ;  yet  it  is  certain,  in  process  of  time,  neither 
consisted  of  the  oldest.  Patres  and  seniores,  as  with 
us  aldermen,  came  to  denote  rank  of  dignity,  not 
of  age  ;  as  Selden  observes,  de  Synedriis,  lib.  i, 
c.  14,  p.  1092,  and  lib.  ii,  c.  9,  §  4,  p.  1423.  ed.  fol. 

E.  F. 

+  Isaiah  iii,  4.  Europe  well  knows  how  miserably 
the  affairs  of  a  nation  arc  conducted  when  the  helm 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  201 

In  reality  youth  has  neither  patience  nor  fore* 
sight,  is  an  enemy  to  all  rule,  and  seeks  nothing 
but  pleasure  and  variety. 

As  soon  as  the  Hebrews  began  to  be  formed 
into  a  people,  they  were  governed  by  old  men. 
When  Moses  returned  into  Egypt  to  promise 
them  that  God  would  set  them  at  liberty,  he 
assembled  the  elders  together,  Exod.  iv,  29,  and 
performed  the  miracles  which  were  the  proof 
of  his  mission  before  them.  All  the  elders  of 
Israel  came  to  the  feast  that  he  made  forJethro 
his  father-in-law.  Exod.  xviii,  12.  When 
God  thought  fit  to  give  council  to  relieve  him 
in  governing  that  great  people,  "  Gather  unto 
me,"  said  he,  "  seventy  men  of  the  elders  of 
Israel,  whom  thou  knowest  to  be  elders  of  the 
people  and  officers  over  them."  So  that  they 
had  already  authority  before  the  law  was  given, 
and  the  state  had  taken  its  form.*    In  the  whole 

of  the  state  is  confided  to  the  hands  of  a  rash  young 
man. 

*  This  is  a  proof  that  the  power,  which  we  before 
mentioned  to  be  given  by  Jacob  to  the  heads  of  tribes, 
took  place  immediately  upon  his  death.  From  that 
time  all  applications  and  messages  are  not  to  the  peo- 
ple but  to  the  elders  of  Israel.  Exod.  iii,  16  ;  xii,  21. 
The  command  of  God,  sent  to  the  house  of  Jacob,  and 
the  children  of  Israel  in  Egypt,  was  delivered  T)y 
Moses  to  the  elders  of  the  people.  Exod.  xix,  3,  7. 
(Bishop  Sherlock's  third  Dissertation,  pp.  304,  305.) 
Whether  the  number  of  these  elders  who  made  up  the 
sanhedrim  was  just  seventy  or  seventy-two,  it  is 
allowed  it  was  first  formed  out  of  Jacob's  chil- 
dren, who  went  into  Egypt,  and  that  it  always  repre- 
sented the  twelve  tribes.  (See  Maldonat  on  Luc. 
xii,  1 ;  Grot,  in  loc.  and  on  Num.  xii,  1 ;  and  Selden, 
de  Synedriis,  lib.  ii.  c.  iv.  8.)  E.  F. 


202  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

Scripture  afterward,  as  often  as  mention  is 
made  of  assemblies  and  public  affairs,  the  elders 
are  always  put  in  the  first  place,  and  sometimes 
named  alone. 

Thence  comes  the  expression  in  the  Psalms, 
exhorting  to  praise  God  in  "  the  congregation 
of  the  people"  and  in  "  the  seat  of  the  elders," 
Psa.  cvii.  32,  that  is,  the  public  council.  These 
are  the  two  parts  that  composed  all  the  ancient 
commonwealths  ;  the  assembly  (which  the 
Greeks  call  ecclesia  (eKicTirjaa)  and  the  Latins 
concio)  and  the  senate.  The  name  of  elder 
UpecpvTepoc  became  afterward  a  title  of  dignity  ; 
and  from  this  Greek  word  is  derived  the  Latin 
name  presbyter  ;  and  from  the  Latin  word  se- 
nior, elder,  comes  the  name  of  seigneur,  or  lord.* 
We  may  judge  of  the  age  required  by  the 
Hebrews  before  a  man  was  reckoned  an  elder, 
by  those  being  called  young  men  whose  advice 
llehoboam  followed,  1  Kings  xii,  8  ;  for  it  is 
said  they  had  been  educated  with  him  ;  from 
which  it  may  be  concluded  they  were  about  his 
age,  who  was  then  forty-one.    2  Chron.  xii,  13. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Their  Administration  of  Justice. 

Justice  was   administered  by  two  sorts  of 
officers,  shophetim  and  shoierim,  established  in 

*  It  is  sometimes  curious  to  remark  the  progress  of 
corruption  in  a  word,  TzpEaOvrepoe,  presbyter,  ancient 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  203 

every  city  by  the  command  which  God  gave 
by  Moses.*  It  is  certain  the  word  shophctim 
signifies  judges  :  as  to  shoterim,  it  is  differently 
translated  by  the  Vulgate  :f  but  the  Jewish 
tradition  explains  it  of  ministers  of  justice,  as 
sheriffs,  sergeants,  or  their  guards,  and  other 
officers.  These  posts  were  given  to  the  Levites, 
and  there  were  six  thousand  of  them  in  David's 
time.  1  Chron.  xxiii,  4.  Such  were  the  judges 
that  Jehoshaphat  restored  in  each  city,  and  to 
whom  he  gave  such  good  instructions,  2  Chron. 
xix,  5,  6,  7  ;  the  Scripture  adds,  that  he  settled 
at  Jerusalem  a  company  of  Levites,  2  Chron. 
v,  8,  priests,  and  heads  of  families,  to  be  judges 
in  great  causes.  Deut.  xvii,  8.  It  was  the 
council  of  seventy  elders,  erected  in  the  time 
of  Moses,  over  which  the  high  priest  presided, 
and  where  all  questions  were  decided  that  were 
too  hard  to  be  determined  by  the  judges  of 
smaller  cities.  The  tradition  of  the  Jews  is, 
that  these  judges  of  particular  cities  were 
twenty-three  in  number ;  that  they  were  all  to 
meet  to  judge  in  capital  cases,  and  that  three 
were  sufficient  for  causes  relating  to  pecuniary 

French  prestre,  modern  French  pretre,  and  English 
priest.  So  Kvpiov  olkoc,  Kuriou  oikos,  the  house  of  the 
Lord,  contracted  into  Kvpioin  Kurioik,  Scottish  kirk, 
and  English  church. 

*  Dent,  xvi,  18.    *]S  ?nn  OnBBn  CD'tDDW 

Judges  and  officers  shalt  thou  make  unto  thee. 
See  the  note  at  the  end  of  this  chapter. 

t  Magistri,    masters ;    prarfecti,   prefects ;     duces, 
leaders  or  captains;  praconcs,  heralds.    Josh,  iii,  2. 


204  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

matters,  and  such  as  were  of  little  consequence. 
(Sanhedr.  c.  i,  s.  6,  &c.)  The  chief  judge  was 
the  king,  according  to  the  saying  of  the  people 
to  Samuel,  "  Give  us  a  king  to  judge  us."  1 
Sam.  viii,  5. 

The  place  where  the  judges  kept  their  court 
was  the  gate  of  the  city ;  for  as  all  the  Israel- 
ites were  husbandmen,  who  went  out  in  the 
morning  to  their  work,  and  came  not  in  again 
till  night,  the  city  gate  was  the  place  where 
most  people  met.  We  must  not  wonder  that 
they  wrought  in  the  fields,  and  abode  in  the 
cities.  They  were  not  such  as  the  chief  cities 
of  our  provinces,  which  can  hardly  be  main- 
tained by  the  produce  of  twenty  or  thirty 
leagues  around  them.  They  were  only  the  ha- 
bitations  of  as  many  labourers  as  were  neces- 
sary to  cultivate  the  ground  nearest  hand. 
Whence  it  came,  that  the  land  being  full  of  in- 
habitants, their  cities  were  very  numerous. 
The  tribe  of  Judah  only  reckoned  a  hundred 
and  fifteen  to  their  share,  Josh,  xv,  21,  &c, 
when  they  took  possession  of  it,  beside  those 
that  were  built  afterward  ;  and  each  city  had 
villages  dependent  upon  it. 

They  must  certainly  then  be  small,  and  very 
near  one  another,  like  common  towns,  well  built 
and  walled  in  ;  having,  in  other  respects,  every 
thing  that  is  to  be  found  in  the  country. 

The  public  place  for  doing  business  among 
the  Greeks  and  Romans  was  the  marketplace, 
or  exchange,  for  the  same  reason,  because  they 
were  all  merchants.     In  our  ancestors'  times 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  205 

the  vassals  of  each  lord  met  in  the  court  of  his 
castle,  and  thence  conies  the  expression,  the 
courts  of  princes.  As  princes  live  more  retired 
in  the  east,  affairs  are  transacted  at  the  gate 
of  the  seraglio  ;  and  this  custom  of  making  one's 
court  at  the  palace  gate  has  been  practised  ever 
since  the  times  of  the  ancient  kings  of  Persia, 
as  we  see  by  several  passages  in  the  book  of 
Esther,  chap,  ii,  19;  iii,  2,  3. 

The  gate  of  the  city  was  the  place  for  doing 
all  public  and  private  business  ever  since  the 
times  of  the  patriarchs.  Abraham  purchased 
his  burying  place  in  the  presence  of  all  those 
that  entered  into  the  gate  of  the  city  of  Hebron. 
Gen.  xxiii,  10,  18.  When  Hamor  and  his  son 
Sichem,  who  ran  away  with  Dinah,  purposed 
to  make  an  alliance  with  the  Israelites,  it  was 
at  the  city  gates  that  they  spake  of  it  to  the 
people.  Gen.  xxxiv,  20.  We  see  the  manner 
of  these  public  acts,  with  all  the  particulars,  in 
the  story  of  Ruth,  chap.  iv.  Boaz,  designing 
to  marry  her,  was  to  have  another  person's 
right  in  her,  who  was  a  nearer  relation,  given 
up  to  him.  For  this  purpose,  he  sits  at  the  gate 
of  Bethlehem,  and,  seeing  this  kinsman  pass  by, 
stops  him  :  then  he  takes  ten  of  the  elders  of 
the  city,  and  after  they  were  all  sat  down  he 
explained  his  pretensions  to  them,  and  got  the 
acknowledgment  which  he  desired  from  his  re- 
lation, with  all  the  formality  prescribed  by  the 
law  ;  which  was  to  pull  off  his  shoe.  He  took 
not  only  the  elders,  but  all  the  people  for  wit- 
nesses,  which  shows  a  great  number  of  specta- 


20G  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

tors  had  got  together  :  nor  is  it  unlikely  that 
curiosity  made  the  people  stop  as  they  passed 
by.  Their  business  was  seldom  in  great  haste  ; 
they  were  all  acquainted  and  all  related,  so  it 
was  natural  for  them  to  be  concerned  about 
each  other's  affairs. 

Perhaps  they  took  these  acts  down  in  writ- 
ing :  but  the  Scripture  does  not  take  notice  of 
any,  except  in  Tobit  and  Jeremiah,  a  little  be- 
fore the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  In  Tobit 
there  is  mention  made  of  a  bond  for  money 
lent,  of  a  marriage  contract,  and  an  instru- 
ment of  covenants  made  upon  the  same  account. 
Tob.  vii,  14.  In  Jeremiah  there  is  a  contract 
upon  a  purchase.  Jer.  xxxii,  6-25.  The  law 
of  Moses  prescribes  no  writing  except  in  case 
of  divorce.  Deut.  xxiv,  1.  But  if  they  had 
not  made  use  of  any  writings  in  those  early 
times,  their  contracts  would  have  been  very 
safe,  since  they  were  made  in  so  public  a  man- 
ner. If  the  kinsman  of  Boaz  should  have  de- 
nied that  he  had  given  up  his  right,  all  the  in- 
habitants of  Bethlehem  could  have  convicted 
him  of  a  falsehood.  Some  of  them  were  pre- 
sent at  it,  and  others  must  have  heard  it  im- 
mediately after. 

It  was  a  long  time  before  the  custom  of  put- 
ting private  contracts  into  writing  was  intro- 
duced among  the  Romans,  as  appears  by  the 
verbal  obligation  which  they  called  stipulation. 
They  were  not  afraid  of  an  action  wanting 
proof,  when  they  had  pronounced  a  certain 
solemn  form  in  the  public  marketplace  among 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  207 

all  the  people,  and  taken  some  particular  citi- 
zens to  witness  it,  who  were  of  reputable  con. 
.dition  and  unblemished  character.  These  trans, 
actions  were  full  as  public  as  those  among  us 
that  are  done  in  private  houses  before  a  public 
notary,  who  often  knows  neither  party,  or  be- 
fore the  town  clerk  and  two  hack  witnesses. 

We  may  suppose  the  gate  with  the  Hebrews 
was  the  same  thing  as  the  square,  or  market- 
place, with  the  Romans.  The  market  for  pro- 
visions was  held  at  the  city  gate.  Elisha  foretold 
that  victuals  should  be  sold  cheap  the  day  after 
in  the  gate  of  Samaria.  2  Kings  vii,  1.  This 
gate  had  a  square,  which  must  have  been  a 
large  one,  because  King  Ahab  assembled  four 
hundred  false  prophets  there.  I  suppose  it  was 
the  same  in  other  cities,  and  that  these  gates 
had  some  building  with  seats  for  the  judges  and 
elders  ;  for  it  is  said  that  Boaz  went  up  to  the 
gate  and  sat  down  there :  and  when  David 
heard  that  Absalom  was  dead,  he  went  up  to 
the  chamber  over  the  gate  to  weep  there.  2 
Sam.  xviii,  33.  This  chamber  might  be  the 
place  for  private  deliberations.  Even  in  the 
temple  of  Jerusalem  causes  were  tried  at  one 
of  the  gates,  and  the  judges  held  their  assizes 
there.  Jer.  xxvi,  10.  After  all  these  exam- 
ples, it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that  the  Scripture 
uses  the  word  gate  so  often  to  signify  judgment, 
or  the  public  council  of  each  city,  or  the  city 
itself,  or  the  state ;  and  that  in  the  gospel  the 
gates  of  hell  signify  the  kingdom  or  power  of 
the  devil. 


208  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

But  as  openly  and  fairl)r  as  we  may  think 
the  Israelites  transacted  their  affairs,  it  must 
not  be  imagined  that  they  had  no  frauds  and 
rogueries,  unjust  prosecutions,  or  false  accusa- 
tions. These  are  evils  inseparable  from  the 
corruption  of  human  nature ;  and  the  more  spirit 
and  vivacity  men  naturally  have,  the  more  are 
they  subject  to  them  :  but  these  evils  are  more 
peculiarly  the  growth  of  great  cities.  When 
David  fled  from  Jerusalem  upon  Absalom's  re- 
bellion, he  represents  "  fury  and  discord  going 
about  day  and  night  within  the  walls  thereof, 
mischief  and  sorrow  in  the  midst  of  it,  and  de- 
ceit and  guile  in  her  streets,"  Psa.  lv,  10,  &c. 
The  prophets  are  full  of  such  reproaches  :  only 
one  may  imagine  these  evils  were  less  common 
than  they  are  now,  because  there  were  fewer 
lawyers  among  them. 

As  temporal  affairs,  as  well  as  spiritual,  were 
governed  by  the  law  of  God,  there  was  no  dis- 
tinction of  tribunals  :  the  same  judges  decided 
cases  of  conscience,  and  determined  civil  or 
criminal  causes.  Thus  they  had  occasion  for 
but  few  different  offices  and  officers,  in  compa- 
rison of  what  we  see  in  the  present  day  ;  for 
we  account  it  an  uncommon  thing  to  be  only 
a  private  man,  and  to  have  no  other  employ, 
ment  than  improving  our  estate,  or  governing 
our  family.  Every  body  is  desirous  of  some 
public  post,  to  enjoy  honours,  prerogatives,  and 
privileges  :  and  employments  are  considered  as 
trades  which  are  a  livelihood,  or  as  titles  of 
distinction.     But  if  we  were  to  examine  what 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  209 

public  offices  only  are  really  necessary,  and  the 
business  done  in  them,  we  should  find  that  a 
very  few  persons  would  be  sufficient  to  execute 
them,  and  have  spare  time  enough  besides  for 
their  private  affairs. 

This  was  the  practice  among  all  the  people 
of  antiquity,  and  especially  the  Hebrews.  In 
Joshua's  time  we  find  but  four  sorts  of  public 
officers ;  zikonim,  senators  or  elders  ;  rashim, 
chiefs ;  shophetim,  judges ;  and  shoterim,  in- 
ferior  officers.*  When  the  kingdom  was  more 
flourishing,  in  David's  time,  the  following  offi- 
cers are  mentioned  :  six  thousand  Levites,  offi- 
cers and  judges  ;  the  heads  of  tribes ;  heads  of 
families,  1  Chron.  xxiii,  4  ;  which  arc  rather 
names  of  quality  than  employment ;  the  heads 
of  twelve  corps,  of  twenty-four  thousand  men 
each  ;  the  heads  of  one  thousand,  and  of  a  hun- 
dred men  ;  the  heads  over  those  that  tenanted 
the  king's  demesnes,  that  is,  his  lands  and 
cattle.  I  call  those  heads  here  whom  the  He- 
brew calls  sirim,   and   the    Latin  principes.^ 

*  Zikonim,  from  jpT  to  grow  old,  were  the  elders 
of  the  people,  something  like  our  eldermen,  or  alder- 
men. 

Rashim,  from  KW*1  to  be  head  or  chief,  probably  mi- 
litary chiefs  or  captains. 

Shophetim,  from  £331?  to  discern,  judge,  determine, 
judges  in  civil  matters;  hence  the  Carthagenian 
sufetes. 

Shoterim,  from  *MD&  a  side  or  part,  subordinate 
magistrates  who  appear  to  have  been  deputies  to  the 
shophetim.     See  Josh,  xxiv,  1. 

t  Sarim,  from  T#  to  direct,  rule,  and  regulate,  pro- 
14 


210  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

But  I  must  observe,  once  for  all,  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  express  the  titles  of  officers  and  dig- 
nities in  another  language.  Thus,  neither  the 
Greek  nor  Latin  versions  give  us  a  just  idea  of 
the  Chaldean  employments,  taken  notice  of  in 
Daniel  iii,  3  ;  Ezekiel  xxiii,  23 ;  and  others. 

Besides,  among  David's  officers  they  reckon 
his  eunuchs  or  domestic  servants ;  for  through- 
out the  Scripture  the  word  eunuch  is  often 
taken  for  what  we  call  a  valet-de-chambre,  or 
footman  ;  or,  in  general,  for  any  servant  em- 
ployed  about  the  king's  person,  without  signi- 
fying any  personal  imperfection.  Captains 
over  fifty  men  are  likewise  mentioned  in  other 
places  ;  but  we  find  nothing  of  captains  over 
tens  except  in  the  law.  Most  of  these  posts 
are  military  ;  and  the  rest  are  but  a  trifle,  if 
one  considers  the  multitude  of  people,  and  the 
extent  of  David's  kingdom. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Their  Wars. 
After  the  administration  of  justice,  we  must 
speak  of  war.  There  was  not  an  Israelite  that 
did  not  carry  arms,  the  priests  and  Levites  not 
excepted.  Benaiah  the  priest,  son  of  Jehoiada, 
was  one  of  the  most  renowned  for  bravery  in 
David's  army,  2  Sam.  xxiii,  20  ;  1  Kings  ii,  35  ; 

bably  military  officers  over  larger  and  smaller  com- 
panies of  men ;  captains  over  thousands,  hundreds, 
&c.     See  1  Chron.  xxviii,  lt 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  211 

and  was  general  of  Solomon's  troops  in  the 
room  of  Joab.  All  were  reckoned  soldiers  that 
were  of  age  for  service,  and  that  was  at  twenty 
years  old  and  upward.  Num.  i,  3,  22.  They 
were  like  the  militia  in  some  countries,  always 
ready  to  assemble  at  the  first  notice.  The  dif- 
ference is,  that  with  us  all  ecclesiastics  are  for- 
bidden the  use  of  arms,  and  that  we  have  more- 
over an  infinite  number  of  people  unfit  for  war  ; 
lawyers,  receivers  of  the  king's  revenues,  citi- 
zens, merchants,  and  tradesmen  :  whereas,  they 
were  all  husbandmen  and  shepherds,  inured 
from  their  childhood  to  labour  and  fatigue.  2 
Chron.  viii,  9.  Nor  is  it  improbable  that  they 
used  them  to  handle  arms,  at  least  from  the 
time  of  David  and  Solomon.  Thus,  at  Rome, 
all  the  citizens  of  such  an  age  were  obliged  to 
serve  a  certain  number  of  campaigns,  when 
they  were  commanded  :  from  whence  it  comes 
that  they  did  not  use  the  expression  of  levying 
troops,  but  choosing  (Habere  delectum  civis  et 
peregrini.  Cic.)  them,  because  they  had  always 
a  great  many  more  than  they  wanted.*  It  was 
no  difficult  thing  for  the  Israelites  to  support 
their  armies  ;  the  country  was  so  small,  and  the 
enemy  so  near,  that  they  often  came  back  to 

*  And  this  is  what  our  Lord  refers  to  in  the  gospel, 
when  he  so  often  says,  "  Many  are  called,  but  lew 
chosen."  The  great  mass  of  the  people  war  called 
together,  and  a  choice  was  made  of  those  who  were 
most  fit  for  service.  The  rest  returned  to  their 
respective  occupations,  and  those  on  whom  the  choice 
fell  were  employed  in  military  duty.  But  both 
parties  were  equally  valuable,  and  necessary  to  the 
safety  and  welfare  of  the  state. 


212  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

lodge  at  home,  or  had  but  one  or  two  days' 
march. 

Their  arms  were  nearly  the  same  with  those 
of  the  Greeks  and  Romans  :  swords,  bows  and 
arrows,  javelins  and  spears,  that  is  to  say,  half 
pikes  ;  for  we  must  not  imagine  the  ancients 
had  hand  spears,  such  as  our  ancient  cavalry 
used.  Their  swords  were  broad,  and  hung 
upon  their  thigh.  Psa.  xlv,  3  ;  Cant,  iii,  8. 
They  made  use  of  slings,  as  we  may  see  in  the 
men  of  Gibeah  in  Benjamin,  who  could  have 
slung  to  a  hair's  breadth  :  and  the  same  Gibeon- 
ites  fought  alike  with  both  hands.  Judg.  xx, 
16.  Saul  commonly  held  a  javelin  in  his  hand. 
1  Sam.  xviii,  10;  and  xix,  9.  Homer  repre- 
sents his  heroes,  and  the  Romans,  Q,uirinus 
and  their  other  gods,  in  the  same  manner.  But 
they  did  not  wear  any  arms,  except  upon  duty, 
not  so  much  as  a  sword.  When  David  ordered 
his  men  to  march  against  Nabal,  he  first  bids 
them  "  gird  on  their  swords,"  1  Sam.  xxv,  13  ; 
though  they  lived  in  a  state  of  continual  alarm. 
The  custom  of  always  wearing  a  sword  by  the 
side  was  peculiar  to  the  Gauls  and  Germans. 

For  defensive  arms  they  carried  shields, 
bucklers,  helmets,  armour  for  the  back  and 
breast,  and  sometimes  greaves  to  cover  the 
legs.  We  see  an  instance  of  a  complete  suit 
of  armour  in  that  of  Goliah,  which  was  all 
brass,  1  Sam.  xvii,  5,  6,  38  ;  like  that  of  the 
Greeks  in  Homer.  But  it  looks  as  if  these 
arms  were  scarce  among  the  Israelites  at  that 
time,  since  King  Saul  offered  to  lend  David 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  213 

his.  They  became  common  afterward,  and 
Uzziah  had  sufficient  to  furnish  all  his  troops, 
which  were  more  than  three  hundred  thousand 
men.  2  Chron.  xxvi,  13-15.  The  same  king 
erected  machines  upon  the  towers  on  the  walls 
of  Jerusalem  to  throw  great  stones  and  arrows, 
and  fortified  several  cities  as  most  other  kings 
did.  Tims  war  was  carried  on  so  early,  almost 
in  the  same  manner  as  it  was  in  later  times, 
before  the  invention  of  fire  arms. 

The  Israelites  had  only  infantry  at  first,  and 
that  was  also  the  chief  strength  of  the  Greeks 
and  Romans.  Cavalry  is  not  so  necessary*  in  hot 
countries,  where  they  can  always  travel  dry- 
shod  :  neither  can  they  be  of  much  use  in  moun- 
tains; but  they  are  of  great  advantage  in  cold 
climates  where  the  roads  are  dirty,  and  to  make 
long     marches    over    plains    that    are    either 

*  The  neglect  of  cavalry  among  the  Israelites  has 
afforded  to  an  excellent  writer  a  strong  internal  proof 
of  that  people  being  under  the  immediate  guidance 
of  a  supernatural  power.  The  prohibition  is  ex- 
pressed, Deut.  xvii,  "  He"  (that  is,  whoever  shall 
be  king  of  Israel)  "  shall  not  multiply  horses  to  him- 
self, nor  cause  the  people  to  return  to  Egypt."  Ac- 
cordingly they  prospered  or  were  defeated  as  they 
obeyed  or  transgressed  this  divine  command;  which, 
as  he  observes,  it  is  impossible  to  justify  by  the  measures 
of  human  prudence.  (See  Bishop  Sherlock's  fourth 
Dissertat.)  Dr.  Warburton,  pursuing  the  same  argu- 
ment, observes,  with  our  author,  that  even  upon 
political  reasons  the  Jews  might  be  justified  in  the  dis- 
use of  cavalry  in  defence  of  their  country,  but  not  in 
conquering  it  from  a  warlike  people  who  abounded  in 
horses.  Here  at  least  the  exertion  of  an  extraordinary 
rovidence  was  wonderfully  conspicuous.  (See  Div, 
eg.  vol,  ii,  book  iv.  sec.  5.)  E.  F. 


E 


214  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

barren  or  thinly  inhabited,  as  in  Poland  and 
Tartary. 

But  they  had  cavalry  under  their  kings  ;  and 
the  first  sign  of  Absalom's  revolt  was  raising 
horses  and  chariots  ;  and  yet,  when  he  had  lost 
the  battle,  he  got  upon  a  mule  to  make  his 
escape.  2  Sam.  xviii,  9.  Solomon,  who  could 
bear  any  expense,  sent  for  a  vast  number  of 
horses  out  of  Egypt,  and  kept  forty  thousand  of 
them,  with  twelve  thousand  chariots.  1  Kings 
iv,  26  ;  2  Chron.  ix,  25.  Their  chariots  of 
war  were,  probably,  like  those  of  the  Greeks, 
small,  with  two  wheels,  that  would  carry  one 
or  two  men  standing  upright  or  leaning  upon 
the  forepart.  The  succeeding  kings,  who  could 
not  support  the  great  expense  that  Solomon  did, 
sent  from  time  to  time  for  succours  to  Egypt, 
and  upon  these  occasions  there  is  always  men- 
tion made  of  horses.  The  Jews  must  have  had 
no  cavalry  in  Hezekiah's  time,  by  Rabshakeh's 
insolence  in  saying  to  them,  "  Come  into  my 
master's  service,  the  king  of  Assyria,  and  I  will 
deliver  thee  two  thousand  horses,  if  thou  be 
able  on  thy  part  to  set  riders  upon  them."* 

*  2  Kings  xviii,  23.  The  above  is  a  literal  transla- 
tion from  the  Vulgate,  and  differs  considerably  in  the 
first  clause  from  that  in  the  English  version.  The 
word  3TJHin  which  we  translate  give  pledges,  and 
the  Vulgate  transite,  passover,  will  have  this  latter 
meaning  by  the  simple  transposition  of  the  two  last 
letters  3  and  "1  thus:  13j?n7l  ;  and  so  St.  Jerome  must 
have  read  it  in  his  Hebrew  copy.  As,  thus  under- 
stood, the  words  of  Rabshakeh  convey  a  strong  soli- 
citation to  mutiny  and  defection,  it  is  most  likely  that 
this  is  the  true  original  reading. 


Manners  of  the  Israelites.  215 

The  Scripture  informs  us  of  no  particulars 
relating  to  their  military  evolutions,  the  form  of 
their  battalions,  or  general  order  of  battle,  though 
it  often  speaks  of  troops  in  battle  array  ;  but  for 
the  arts  of  encamping  and  marching  in  good 
order,  the  journey  through  the  wilderness  is  a 
noble  example  of  it.  The  number  of  this  pro- 
digious army  was  known  by  exact  lists  ;  each 
man  was  set  down  in  his  tribe,  each  tribe  in 
its  quarter  under  one  of  the  four  heads,  accord- 
ing to  the  order  of  birthright  among  the  patri- 
archs, and  the  quality  of  their  mothers.  Num. 
i,  2,  &c.  They  marched,  by  sound  of  trumpet, 
always  in  the  same  order  ;  and  always  quar- 
tered in  the  same  situation  about  the  taberna- 
cle of  the  covenant,  which  was  the  centre  of  the 
camp.  They  took  all  proper  care  for  keeping 
their  quarters  clean,  Num.  v,  2,  &c.  ;  Deut. 
xxiii,  10,  11,  &c. :  which  was  very  necessary 
in  so  warm  a  country,  and  hard  to  be  done  in 
so  vast  a  multitude.  In  short,  we  see  that  the 
way  of  encamping,  and  every  thing  else  that 
we  admire  with  so  much  reason  in  the  Greeks 
and  Romans,  was  taken  from  the  ancient  mo- 
dels of  the  eastern  people.  The  Hebrews  set  a 
high  value  upon  their  booty  and  spoils,  as  all 
the  nations  of  antiquity  did  :  they  were  marks 
of  honour. 

From  Joshua's  time  to  the  kings  the  command 
of  armies  belonged  to  those  whom  the  people 
chose,  or  God  raised  up  in  an  extraordinary 
manner,  as  Othniel,  Barak,  and  Gideon  ;  but 
none  were  subject  to  them  but  the  country  or 


216  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  people  that  chose  them,  or  to  whom  God 
gave  them  for  deliverers.  The  rest  of  the 
people,  abusing  their  liberty,  often  exposed 
themselves  to  the  insults  of  their  enemies  : 
which  made  them  ask  for  a  king,  not  only  to 
do  them  justice,  but  also  to  conduct  their 
armies,  and  make  war  for  them.  1  Sam.  viii, 
20.  From  that  time,  too,  they  were  in  much 
more  safety.  The  king  called  the  people  to- 
gether when  he  judged  it  convenient,  and 
always  kept  up  a  great  number  of  forces.  It  is 
observed,  in  the  beginning  of  Saul's  reign,  that 
he  maintained  three  thousand  men.  1  Sam. 
xiii,  2.  David  had  twelve  bodies  of  four  and 
twenty  thousand  each,  who  served  monthly  by 
turns.  Jehoshaphat  had  not  a  third  part  of 
David's  kingdom,  and  yet  he  had  eleven  hun- 
dred and  sixty  thousand  fighting  men  in  his 
service,  without  reckoning  garrisons.  1  Chron. 
xxvii,  1,  &c. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 
Their  Kings. 

The  king  had  the  power  of  life  and  death, 
and  could  put  criminals  to  death  without  the 
formality  of  justice.  David  made  use  of  this 
prerogative  in  the  case  of  him  who  boasted  that 
he  had  killed  Saul,  and  of  those  that  murdered 
Ishbosheth.  2  Sam.  i,  15  ;  iv,  12.  The  Ro- 
man emperors  possessed  a  similar  power.  The 
kings  of  Israel  levied  tribute  upon  the  Israelites 
themselves,  for  Saul  promises  that  all  the  family 


MANSERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES.  217 

of  the  man  that  would  fight  Goliah  should  be 
exempted  from  it,  1  Sam.  xvii,  25  ;  and  it  ap- 
pears that  Solomon  had  laid  excessive  taxes 
upon  them  by  the  complaints  made  to  Reho- 
boam.  1  Kings  xii,  14.  The  power  of  kings 
was  in  other  respects  very  much  limited  :  they 
were  obliged  to  keep  the  law  as  well  as  private 
men  ;  they  could  neither  add  to  nor  diminish 
it,  and  there  is  no  instance  of  any  of  them 
making  so  much  as  one  new  law.  Their  way 
of  living  at  home  was  very  plain,  as  we  may 
see  by  the  description  that  Samuel  gave  of  their 
manners  to  put  the  people  out  of  conceit  with 
them,  1  Sam.  viii,  10-18  :  he  allows  them  only 
women  for  household  affairs ;  yet  they  had  a 
great  attendance  when  they  appeared  in  public. 
Among  the  signs  of  Absalom's  rebellion,  the 
Scripture  reckons  fifty  men  that  ran  before 
him,  2  Sam.  xv,  1  ;  and  the  same  is  said  of  his 
brother  Adonijah,  1  Kings  i,  5. 

The  kings  lived  sparingly  as  well  as  private 
people  :  the  difference  was,  they  had  more  land 
and  herds.  When  David's  riches  are  reckoned 
up,  indeed,  his  treasures  of  gold  and  silver  are 
put  into  the  account ;  but  so  are  his  tillage  and 
vineyards,  his  stores  of  wine  and  oil,  his  plan- 
tations of  olive  and  fig  trees,  his  herds  and 
kine,  camels,  asses,  and  sheep.  1  Chron.  xxvii, 
25,  &c.  Thus  Homer  describes  the  riches  of 
Ulysses  ;  he  says  he  had  twelve  great  herds  of 
each  sort  of  cattle  upon  the  continent,  beside 
what  he  had  in  his  island.  (Odyss.  xiv,  v.  100.) 
They  took  out  of  this  great  stock  what  was 


218  MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

necessary  to  maintain  their  household.  There 
were  in  Solomon's  time  twelve  overseers  distri- 
buted through  the  land  of  Israel,  who,  each  in 
his  turn,  sent  monthly  provisions  for  the  table, 
1  Kings  iv,  7,  which  for  one  day  were  "  thirty 
measures  of  fine  flour,  and  threescore  measures 
of  meal,  ten  fat  oxen,  and  twenty  out  of  the 
pastures,  and  a  hundred  sheep,  beside  harts,  and 
roebucks,  and  fallow  deer,  and  fatted  fowl,"  1 
Kings  iv,  22,  &c,  enough  to  feed  at  least  five 
thousand  people.  As  this  provision  was  the 
product  of  the  country  itself,  there  was  no  need 
to  buy  any  thing,  nor  any  want  of  purveyors, 
treasurers,  or  comptrollers,  nor  of  that  vast 
number  of  officers,  which  eat  up  great  lords  ; 
so  that  gold  and  silver  continued  In  id  up,  or 
served  for  its  most  natural  use,  to  be  manufac- 
tured into  plate  and  household  ornaments. 

Hence  came  the  vast  riches  of  David  and  So- 
lomon. 1  Chron.  xxix.  David  prepared  all  that 
was  necessary  for  building  the  temple,  the  value 
of  which  came  to  a  hundred  and  eight  thousand 
talents  of  gold,  and  a  million  and  ten  thousand 
talents  of  silver  ;*  that  is,  about  five  hundred 
and  thirty-four  millions,  eight  hundred  and  fifty- 
nine  thousand,  seven  hundred  and  eighty -four 
'pounds  sterling.  Besides,  he  caused  great  trea- 
suros  to  be  laid  up  in  his  sepulchre.  Solomon 
built  a  great  number  of  palaces,  fortified  seve- 
ral cities,  and  finished  several  public  works. 
All  the  plate  and  furniture  of  his  house  at  Mount 

*  1  Chron.  xxii,  14.  In  the  origin; il  only  one  hun- 
dred thousand  talents  of  gold. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  219 

Libanus  was  of  pure  gold  ;  beside  two  hundred 
golden  targets,  each  of  which  was  worth  about 

five  hundred  and  ninety -six  pounds,  or  a  hundred 
and  nineteen  thousand  two  hundred  pounds  ster- 
ling in  all ;  and  three  hundred  bucklers,  worth 
two  hundred  and  seventy-five  pounds  apiece  ; 
which  amounts   to   about   eighty-two  thousand 

five  hundred  pounds  sterling.* 

His  revenues,  too,  were  great.  Commerce 
alone  brought  him  in  every  year  six  hundred 
and  sixty-six  talents  of  gold ;  which  make  one 
million,  nine  hundred  and  seventy  thousand,  eight 
hundred  and  thirty-four  pounds  sterling.  He 
made  the  Israelites  pay  tribute,  and  all  foreign- 
ers that  were  under  his  dominion,  the  Hivites, 
the  Amorites,  and  all  the  other  ancient  inha- 
bitants of  the  land  of  Israel,  the  Idumeans, 
great  part  of  Arabia,  and  all  Syria :  for  his 
empire  extended  from  the  borders  of  Egypt  to 
Euphrates  ;  and  all  the  countries  that  were  so 
rich  sent  him  every  year  vessels  of  gold  and 
silver,  cloth,  arms,  perfumes,  horses,  and  mules. 
These  reflections  may  serve  to  make  one  under- 
stand how  Croesus  came  by  his  riches  in  a 
kingdom  about  the  same  size  as  that  of  Solo- 
mon. Silver  and  gold  were  not  yet  dispersed 
through  the  world.  There  was  but  little  in 
Greece,  none  in  Italy  and  the  rest  of  Europe, 
except  Spain,  where  they  had  some  mines. 
Let  us  stand  still  a  little  to  consider  the  pros- 

*  See  the  proper  method  of  calculating  the  He- 
brew talent,  and  the  value  of  the  shields,  so  as  to  bring 
them  into  English  money,  part  iv,  in  fine. 


220  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

perity  of  Solomon,  for  it  is  an  agreeable  con- 
templation.  If  we  were  to  read  all  history 
through,  we  should  not  find  one  example  of  such 
a  perfect  conjunction  of  all  the  good  things  that 
are  to  be  enjoyed  in  this  world :  a  young  prince 
in  the  flower  of  his  age,  of  a  handsome  person, 
of  great  parts,  learning,  and  accomplishments  ; 
in  such  reputation  for  wisdom  that  all  the  earth 
sought  to  hear  him,  1  Kings  x,  24  ;  and  a  queen 
came  in  person  from  a  great  distance  to  con- 
verse with  him.  1  Kings  x,  1.  He  was  master 
of  a  large  kingdom,  which  was  in  a  state  of 
profound  peace,  inhabited  the  finest  country  in 
the  world,  had  the  most  magnificent  palaces, 
and  numerous  attendants  ;  was  loaded  with 
riches,  swimming  in  pleasures,  denying  himself 
nothing,  as  he  owns,  and  employing  all  his  vast 
genius  to  satisfy  his  desires.  Eccles.  ii,  10. 
This  we  should  call  a  happy  man,  according  to 
our  natural  ideas.  Yet  it  is  certain  he  was  not 
so,  because  he  was  not  contented.  He  himself 
says  that  he  found  pleasure  and  joy  were  only 
illusion,  and  that  all  his  labour  was  hut  vanity 
and  vexation  of  spirit.     Eccles.  v,  11. 

By  this  prosperity  of  Solomon  and  his  people, 
God  gave  two  important  lessons  to  mankind  at 
the  same  time.  First,  he  shows  his  faithfulness 
in  accomplishing  his  promises,  by  giving  the 
Israelites  so  plentifully  of  all  the  good  things 
which  he  had  promised  their  fathers  in  the  pos- 
session of  this  land ;  that  no  one  hereafter  might 
doubt  of  his  power  to  reward  those  that  adhere 
to  him  and  keep   his   commandments.     Men 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  221 

that  applied  themselves  so  entirely  to  earthly 
things  stood  in  need  of  such  an  earnest,  to 
make  them  believe  they  should  hereafter  enjoy 
an  invisible  happiness  and  the  recompense  of 
another  life.  But  besides,  by  granting  the 
Israelites  the  possession  of  these  earthly  goods, 
and  profusely  heaping  on  them  whatever  might 
contribute  to  the  happiness  of  this  life,  God 
has  given  all  men  an  opportunity  of  seeing 
them  in  a  true  light,  and  conceiving  higher 
hopes.  For  who  under  the  sun  can  pretend  to 
be  happy  if  Solomon  was  not  ?  Who  can  doubt 
that  whatever  happens  in  this  world  is  vanity, 
after  he  has  confessed  it  ?  Does  not  this  ex- 
ample show  us  plainly  that  worldly  goods  arc 
not  only  vain,  but  dangerous  ?  not  only  inca- 
pable of  satisfying  the  heart  of  man,  but  likely 
to  corrupt  it  ?  What  reason  have  rce  to  flat- 
ter ourselves  that  we  shall  make  better  use  of 
them  than  a  people  so  dear  to  God,  and  so  well 
instructed  in  their  duty?  and  wrho  seem  to  have 
had  a  better  right  to  this  sort  of  happiness, 
since  it  was  proposed  to  them  as  a  reward. 
What  presumption  would  it  be  to  think  ourselves 
more  capable  of  resisting  pleasures  than  the 
wise  Solomon?  He  gave  himself  up  so  much 
to  the  love  of  women  that  he  had  a  thousand 
of  them,  though  a  multiplicity  was  absolutely 
forbidden  by  "the  law  of  God,  Deut.  xvii,  17  ; 
and  his  complaisance  to  them  carried  him  even 
to  idolatry.  His  subjects  followed  his  bad  ex- 
ample ;  and  after  his  reign  the  manners  of  the 
Israelites   grew  worse  and  worse  :    they  had 


222  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

attained  their  highest  pitch  of  earthly  felicity, 
and  now  began  to  decline. 

The  division  of  the  two  kingdoms  of  Israel 
and  Judah  still  augmented  the  evil.  The  cor- 
ruption was  much  the  greatest  in  Israel,  where 
idolatry  always  prevailed,  which  is  the  fountain 
of  all  sorts  of  wickedness  :  rebellion  and  trea- 
son were  common  there.  Wisd.  xiv,  27.  In 
Judah  the  crown  never  went  out  of  the  family 
of  David  :  there  were  several  pious  kings  in  it. 
The  priests  and  Levites,  who  retired  thither, 
preserved  the  tradition  of  the  true  religion,  and 
a  more  pure  practice  of  the  law. 

In  these  latter  times,  the  law  being  despised, 
they  had  frequent  intercourse  with  strangers, 
chiefly  to  procure  succours  in  war  :  and  this  is 
the  reason  of  their  being  so  frequently  reproached 
by  the  prophets  with  their  want  of  trust  in  God. 
The  strangers  whose  alliance  they  courted  most 
were  the  Assyrians  and  Egyptians,  the  two 
most  powerful  nations  of  those  times.  To 
please  them  they  imitated  their  customs  and 
idolatry  ;  and  the  ruin  of  the  Israelites  followed 
the  fortune  of  these  nations  when  Egypt  fell 
and  Assyria  got  the  superiority. 


MAJSSERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  223 

PART  III. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Jews— Their  Captivity. 

What  has  already  been  noted  appeared  to 
me  the  most  remarkable  in  the  manners  of  the 
Israelites,  while  they  lived  at  full  liberty  in 
their  own  country,  without  mixing  with  stran- 
gers, or  being  subject  to  infidels.  Let  us  now 
take  a  view  of  their  last  state,  from  the  Baby- 
lonish captivity  to  their  entire  dispersion. 
Though  they  were  still  the  same  people,  and 
their  manners  the  same  in  the  main,  there  was 
however  a  great  alteration  in  both. 

First,  they  are  called  only  Jems  in  these  later 
times,  because,  in  reality,  there  was  no  king- 
dom but  that  of  Judah  subsisting.  Samaria  had 
been  destroyed,  and  Salmanasar  had  taken  the 
ten  tribes  captive  which  bore  the  name  of  Israel 
above  a  hundred  years  before  the  ruin  of  Jeru- 
salem. And  though  the  kingdom  of  Judah 
comprehended  the  two  whole  tribes  of  Benjamin 
and  Levi,  and  many  particular  persons  of  all 
the  rest,  whom  a  religious  zeal  had  brought 
thither  after  Jeroboam's  schism  ;  all  was  con- 
founded in  the  name  of  Judea  and  Jews,  and  so 
they  were  usually  called  before  the  captivity. 
2  Kings  xvi,  6. 

As  the  kingdom  manifestly  tended  to  its  ruin 
after  the  death  of  Josiah,  great  numbers  of  Jews 


224  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

were  dispersed  on  all  sides,  and  retired  to  the 
Ammonites,  Moabites,  Idumeans,  and  other 
neighbouring  people.  Jer.  xli,  10.  The  Chal- 
deans carried  away  captive  the  most  consider- 
able of  those  who  dwelt  at  Jerusalem  when  it 
was  taken,  and  left  none  but  the  poorer  sort  to 
till  the  ground  :  this  remnant,  too,  went  into 
Egypt  a  little  while  after.     Jer.  xliii,  1-7. 

As  to  those  that  were  carried  to  Babylon, 
they  were  servants  to  the  king  and  his  sons,  as 
the  Scripture  tells  us  :  for  such  was  the  law  of 
war  at  that  time.  2  Chron.  xxxvi,  20.  All 
that  were  taken  in  arms,  all  the  inhabitants  of 
a  town  carried  by  storm,  or  surrendered  at  dis- 
cretion, and  of  the  adjacent  country  which  de- 
pended upon  it,  were  slaves  to  the  conquerors. 
They  were  either  the  property  of  the  public,  or 
that  particular  person  that  had  taken  them,  ac- 
cording to  the  laws  concerning  the  acquisition 
or  division  of  spoil  then  subsisting  in  each 
country.  Thus,  at  the  taking  of  Troy,  all  that 
remained  alive  were  made  slaves,  not  excepting 
Queen  Hecuba  and  the  princesses  her  daughters. 

The  Greek  and  Roman  history  is  full  of 
such  examples  ;  the  Romans  loaded  those  kings 
with  chains  that  resisted  obstinately  ;  or  put 
them  to  death  after  they  had  made  them  ap- 
pear at  their  triumph.  They  sold  the  common 
people  by  auction,  and  divided  their  lands  among 
their  own  citizens,  whom  they  sent  to  establish 
colonies  there  :  which  was  the  certain  way  to 
secure  their  conquests.  Neither  the  Jews  nor 
Israelites  were  so  hardly  used  by  the  Assyrians. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  225 

Some  had  great  liberty  allowed  them,  as  Tobit 
by  King  Enemessar  ;  and  there  were  some  rich 
among  them,  as  Tobit  himself,  his  kinsman 
Raguel,  and  his  friend  Gabael,  Tobit  i,  14  ;  and 
at  Babylon  Joachim,  Susanna's  husband.  (Hist, 
of  Susanna.)  It  appears  likewise  by  the  story 
of  Susanna,  that  the  Jews,  notwithstanding 
their  captivity,  had  the  exercise  of  their  laws, 
and  the  power  to  appoint  judges  of  life  and  death. 
However,  it  was  impossible  but  this  mingling 
with  strangers  should  cause  some  change  in 
their  manners,  since  one  of  their  chief  maxims 
was  to  separate  themselves  from  all  other  na- 
tions. Many  were  prevailed  upon  to  worship 
idols,  eat  forbidden  food,  and  marry  wives  from 
among  strangers,  and  all  conformed  to  their 
masters  in  things  indifferent,  one  of  which  was 
their  language.  Thus,  during  the  seventy  years 
that  the  captivity  lasted,  they  forgot  Hebrew, 
and  none  but  the  learned  understood  it,  as  it  is 
now  with  the  Latin  among  us.  Their  vulgar 
tongue  was  the  Syriac  or  Chaldee,  such  as  that 
in  which  a  large  portion  of  Daniel  and  Ezra 
are  written,  and  the  Tar  gums  or  paraphrases 
upon  Scripture  that  were  composed  afterward, 
that  the  people  might  understand  it.  They 
changed  their  letters  too,  and  instead  of  the  old 
ones,  which  the  Samaritans  have  preserved, 
took  the  Chaldean,  which  we  erroneously  call 
the  Hebrew. 

15 


226  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 


CHAPTER  II. 

The  Return  of  the  Jews,  and  their  State  under  the 
Persians. 

When  Cyrus  gave  them  their  liberty,  with 
leave  to  go  back  into  Judea  and  rebuild  the 
temple,  they  did  not  all  return,  nor  at  one  time. 
There  was  a  great  number  that  stayed  at  Ba- 
bylon and  in  all  places  where  they  were  settled  : 
and  they  that  came  back  were  not  all  Jews  : 
some  few  of  the  ten  tribes  joined  themselves  to 
them,  and  yet  they  made  but  a  small  number 
altogether.  The  first,  that  Zerubbabel  con- 
ducted, did  not  amount  to  fifty  thousand,  with 
the  servants  that  attended  them  ;*  and  one  may 
see  their  poverty  by  the  small  number  of  their 
servants  and  cattle.  What  comparison  is  there 
between  fifty  thousand  souls,  and  what  there 
must  have  been  in  the  time  of  Jehoshaphat  to 
make  up  twelve  hundred  thousand  fighting  men  ? 
There  came,  besides,  with  Ezra  about  fifteen  hun- 
dred, Ezra  viii,  1-14,  and  we  may  suppose  there 
were  several  other  companies. 

They  did  what  they  could  to  discover  their 
former  inheritances,  and  preserve  each  family's 
share.  Upon  this  account  Ezra  collected  all 
the  genealogies  that  are  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Chronicles,  where  he  chiefly  enlarges  upon  the 
three  tribes  of  Judah,  Levi,  and  Benjamin  ;  and 

*  The  whole  number  was  as  follows :  the  people. 
42,360;  male  and  female  servants,  7,337;  male  and 
female  singers,  200 ;  horses,  736 ;  mules,  245 ; 
camels,  435 ;  asses,  6,720.    Ezra  ii,  64-67. 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  227 

carefully  sets  down  their  habitations.  To  peo- 
ple Jerusalem,  they  received  all  that  would 
come  and  settle  there,  which  confounded,  no 
doubt,  the  order  of  their  shares.  Neh.  xi,  3. 
Besides,  it  was  just  that  such  as  were  present 
should  take  possession  of  their  lands  who  had 
no  mind  to  return,  or  perhaps  were  not  in 
being.  So,  in  the  later  times,  Joseph  dwelt  at 
Nazareth  in  Galilee,  though  his  family  was  ori- 
ginally of  Bethlehem  :  and  Anna  the  prophetess 
lived  at  Jerusalem.  But  still  they  knew  what 
tribe  they  were  of,  and  carefully  preserved 
their  genealogies,  as  we  see  by  Joseph's,  who 
was  a  poor  artificer.  They  likewise  carefully 
distinguished  the  true  Israelites  from  strangers 
that  had  been  admitted  into  their  society,* 
whom  they  called  geiores  in  their  own  tongue, 
and  proselytes  in  Greek.  (African  Apud. 
Euseb.  Hist.  Eccles.  lib.  i,  c.  7.) 

Thus  one  of  their  first  concerns,  after  the 
restoration,  was  to  separate  themselves  from 
strangers,  and  to  cause  the  prohibition  of  the 

*  Two  serfs  of  men  joined  themselves  to  the 
Israelites  when  they  went  out  of  Egypt:  one  sort 
were  native  Egyptians,  called  by  the  Septuagint 
avToxflovec,  those  born  in  the  land;  the  others  were 
a  mixed  multitude,  who  are  termed  by  the  Septuagint 
yeiupaic,  Exod.  xii,  19,  from  *U  gur,  a  stranger. 
These  were  extraneous  persons  among  the  Egyptians, 
who  took  the  land  to  till  at  a  certain  rent  :  such  were 
the  Je  ws  before  they  went  up  out  of  Egypt.  Both  these 
sorts  of  men  the  Scripture  comprehends  under  the  de- 
nomination of  a  mixed  multitude,  Exod.  xiii,  38. 
See  Yalesius'  Notes  on  Euseb.  Hist.  Eccles.  lib. 
*,  c.  7.  E.  F.  &  A.  C. 


12*28  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

law,  relating  to  marriages  with  infidels,  to  be  ob- 
served, Ezra  ix,  1,  &c.  ;  which  they  extended 
to  nations  not  specified  in  the  law  ;  namely,  to 
the  people  of  Azotus,  who  were  part  of  the  Phi- 
listines ;  to  the  Egyptians,  Ammonites,  and  Mo- 
abites.  The  evils  that  the  Jews  were  sensible 
they  had  received  from  these  marriages,  since 
the  bad  example  of  Solomon,  inclined  the  wise 
men  to  interpret  the  law  in  this  sense,  and  ex- 
tend it  rather  beyond  the  import  of  the  letter, 
that  they  might  more  effectually  fulfil  the  inten- 
tion of  it.  The  priests  were  most  strict  in  ob- 
serving these  prohibitions;  they  married  none 
but  women  of  their  own  tribe,  and  Josephus  has 
informed  us  of  the  precautions  used  about  it 
even  in  his  time.  (Cont.  App.  1.  i,  c.  7, 
p.  978.  Whiston's  edition.)  In  general  the 
Jews  were  never  so  faithful  to  God;  and.  after 
they  returned  from  captivity,  we  never  hear 
idolatry  once  mentioned  among  them  :  so  much 
were  they  struck  with  tnat  severe  punishment, 
and  the  accomplishment  of  the  prophecies  that 
threatened  them  with  it.  Indeed,  apostates 
were  entirely  at  liberty  to  stay  among  the  in- 
fidels, so  that  there  appeared  none  but  such  as 
were  really  Jews. 

Under  the  first  kings  of  Persia  they  were  still 
very  weak,  envied  by  the  strangers  their  neigh- 
bours, especially  the  Samaritans,  exposed  to  their 
insults  and  calamities,  and  in  danger  of  having 
their  throats  cut  upon  the  least  signification  of 
the  king's  pleasure  ;  as  we  see  by  the  cruel  edict 
that  Haman  obtained  against   them,  from  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  229 

effects  of  which  they  were  saved  by  Queen 
Esther,  iii,  iv,  v.  They  could  not  finish  the  re- 
building of  the  temple  till  twenty  years  after 
their  first  coming  back,  nor  raise  the  walls  of 
Jerusalem  again  under  sixty  years  more  :  so 
they  were  fourscore  years  in  renewing  the 
whole.  The  country  must  have  been  very  poor, 
since  Herodotus,  who  lived  at  that  time,  com- 
prehends  Syria,  Phoenicia,  Palestine,  and  the 
Isle  of  Cyprus,  under  one  single  government, 
that  paid  Darius  but  three  hundred  and  fifty 
talents  tribute,  (Herod,  lib.  iii,  p.  226,)  which 
was  no  more  than  was  paid  by  one  of  the  least 
provinces;  whereas  that  of  Babylon  alone  paid 
a  thousand.  This  revenue  was  doubled  in  the 
time  of  the  Romans  for  Palestine  alone  ;  it 
brought  in  to  Herod  and  his  sons  seven  hundred 
and  sixty  talents,  which,  to  compute  by  the 
smaller  talent,  amount  to  about  sixty-eight 
thousand  seven  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  ster- 
ling.    (Joseph.  Bell.  Jud.  1.  ii,  c.  6,  p.  766.) 

By  little  and  little  the  Jews  were  established 
again,  and  during  the  reign  of  the  Persians  they 
lived  under  their  own  laws,  in  the  form  of  a 
commonwealth,  governed  by  the  high  priest  and 
the  council  of  seventy-two  elders.  The  country 
was  repeopled,  the  towns  new  built,  and  the 
lands  better  cultivated  than  ever.  Plenty  was 
seen  again,  and  there  was  such  a  profound 
peace  and  tranquillity,  that,  for  nearly  three 
hundred  years,  there  happened  no  commotions, 
nor  any  thing  that  makes  the  common  subject 
of  histories;  and  thence  proceeds  that  great 


230  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

void  that  we  find  between  the  time  of  Nehemiah 
and  the  Maccabees.  The  temple  was  honoured 
even  by  strangers,  who  visited  it  and  brought 
offerings  thither.  (Philo.  Leg.)  In  short, 
the  prosperity  of  the  Jews  was  so  great  after 
their  return  that  the  prophets,  in  foretelling  it, 
have  left  us  the  most  magnificent  types  of  the 
Messiah's  reign.* 

The  Greeks  began  then  to  be  acquainted 
with  the  Jews  in  Egpyt  and  Syria,  whither 
they  so  often  travelled ;  and  they  made  great 
use  of  this  correspondence,  if  we  may  believe 
the  most  ancient  Christian  authors,  as  Justin 
Martyr  and  Clemens  of  Alexandria  ;  for  they 
assure  us  that  the  Greek  poets,  lawgivers,  and 
philosophers  learned  the  best  part  of  their  doc- 
trine from  the  Jews.  Indeed  Solon  travelled 
into  Egypt,  and  the  laws  that  he  gave  to  the 
Athenians  were  very  like  those  of  Moses. 
Pythagoras  had  been  long  in  Egypt,  and  went 
to  Babylon  in  the  time  of  Cambyses :  he  had, 
therefore,  seen  the  Jews,  and  might  have  con- 
versed with  them.  Plato  studied  many  years 
in  Egypt,  and  makes  Socrates  speak  so  many 
excellent  things,  founded  upon  the  principles 
taught  by  Moses,  that  he  may  justly  be  sup- 
posed to  have  known  something  of  them. 

The  best  things  which  Plato  teaches  in  his 
laws  and  commonwealth,  the  Jews  really  prac- 

*  Several  prophecies  relative  to  this  time  of  peace 
and  prosperity  have  been  applied  by  commentators  to 
the  days  of  the  Messiah  exclusively.  This  should  be 
carefully  avoided. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  231 

tised  ;  as  living  by  one's  own  industry,  without 
luxury,  without  ambition,  without  having  it  in 
our  power  to  undo  ourselves  or  grow  too  rich, 
esteeming  justice  the  greatest  of  all  blessings, 
and  avoiding  all  novelty  and  change.  In  the 
persons  of  Moses,  David,  and  Solomon,  we  dis- 
cover examples  of  the  wise  man  whom  he 
wished  for  to  govern  a  state  and  make  it 
happy,  which  he  scarcely  hoped  would  ever 
come  to  pass.  He  mentions  certain  traditions 
of  venerable  antiquity  in  several  places,  with- 
out supporting  them  with  any  proof,  relating  to 
the  judgment  of  mankind  after  death,  and  the 
state  of  the  other  life,  which  are  manifestly 
doctrines  of  the  true  religion.  (Plato  de  Re- 
pub,  vi,  et  x,  in  fine.)  If  Plato  and  the  other 
Greeks  had  not  learned  these  truths  imme- 
diately from  the  Jews,  they  had  them  at  least 
from  other  people  of  the  east,  who,  being  nearer 
the  origin  of  mankind,  and  having  writings 
more  ancient  than  the  Greeks,  had  preserved 
many  more  traditions  of  the  first  men,  though 
obscured  and  involved  in  fables. 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  State  of  the  Jews  under  the  Macedonians. 

The  conquests  of  Alexander  made  the  Jews 
much  better  known  to  the  Greeks,  to  whom  they 
became  subject.  Josephus  brings  proofs  of  it 
from  the  testimony  of  Clearchus,  a  disciple  of 


232  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

Aristotle,  and  Hecatseus  the  Abderite.  (Joseph, 
cont.  App.  i,  22,  23,  ii,  4.)  They  continued 
to  live  according  to  their  own  laws,  under  the 
protection  of  the  Macedonian  kings,  as  they 
had  done  under  the  Persians;  but  as  their 
country  lay  between  Syria  and  Egypt,  they 
sometimes  obeyed  the  king  of  one  of  those  na- 
tions, and  sometimes  the  king  of  the  other,  as 
they  were  strongest ;  and  they  were  well  or  ill 
used  by  them  according  to  the  humour  or  in- 
terest of  their  kings,  or  the  credit  of  their  ene- 
mies. Alexander  the  Great,  being  convinced 
of  their  affection  and  fidelity,  gave  them  the 
province  of  Samaria,  and  exempted  it  from  tri- 
bute ;  and  when  he  built  Alexandria,  settled 
some  Jews  in  it,  granting  them  the  same  pri- 
vileges as  the  other  citizens,  till  at  last  they 
also  were  called  Macedonians.  (Joseph.  Ant. 
xii,  1,  et  cont.  App.  1.  ii,  c.  2.)  Indeed,  the 
first  of  the  Ptolemies,  having  taken  Jerusalem 
by  surprise,  carried  great  numbers  of  the  Jews 
captives  into  Egypt,  who  were  spread  as  far  as 
Cyrene.  But  afterward,  finding  how  religious 
they  were,  and  faithful  to  their  oaths,  he  put 
some  of  them  into  his  garrison,  and  treated 
them  so  well,  that  it  drew  many  more  into  that 
country.  (Joseph.  Ant.  xii,  2.)  It  is  said 
that  his  son  Philadelphus  redeemed  all  the  Jews 
that  were  slaves  in  his  dominions,  and  sent 
great  presents  to  Jerusalem  to  procure  that 
translation  which  he  got  made  of  their  law.* 

*  See  Aristaeus'  Hist,  of  the  Septuagint.     Notwith- 
standing the  testimony  of  Josepnus,  Aristaeus,  and 


MANNERS  OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  233 

They  were  also  favoured  by  several  kings 
of  Syria.  Seleucus  Nicanor  gave  them  the 
right  of  citizens  in  the  cities  which  he  built  in 
Asia  Minor  and  Ccelo-Syria,  and  even  in  An- 
tioch  his  capital,  with  privileges  that  they  also 
enjoyed  under  the  Romans.  (Joseph.  Ant.  xii, 
3.)  Antiochus  the  Great,  having  received  sig- 
nal services  from  the  Jews,  granted  consider- 
able favours  and  immunities  to  the  city  of  Je- 
rusalem ;  and  to  secure  Lydia  and  Phrygia, 
which  were  not  quite  sound  in  their  allegiance, 
he  established  colonies  of  Jews  there,  giving 
them  lands  to  cultivate  and  build  on. 

The  first  privilege  that  the  Jews  always 
asked  upon  these  occasions  was  liberty  to  exer- 
cise their  religion  and  observe  their  law.  But 
as  for  the  rest,  they  could  not  avoid  learning 
many  Grecian  customs,  as  they  had  Chaldean 
and  others,  and  particularly  the  Greek  tongue, 
which  was  then  become  common  throughout 
all  the  east,  and  continued  so  as  long  as  the 
Roman  empire  lasted  there.  Thence  it  was 
that  many  took  Greek  names,  as  Aristobulus, 
Philon,  Andreas,  and  Philippus  ;  or  Hebrew 
names  disguised  with  Greek  terminations,  as 
Jason  for  Jesus,  Simon  for  Simeon,  Hieroso- 
lyma  for  Jerusalem. 

It  was  probably  about   this  time   that   the 

several  of  the  primitive  fathers,  the  history  of  the 
Greek  translation  of  the  Scriptures,  by  the  command 
of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  king  of  Egypt,  is  now  con- 
sidered either  a.  fable  or  truth  so  disguised  as  to  be  no 
longer  perceptible. 


234  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

Jews  passed  the  seas,  and  settled  in  Europe. 
For  they  that  understood  the  Greek  torfgue, 
and  had  resided  among  that  people  in  Asia, 
Syria,  and  Egypt,  might  easily  live  in  any  part 
of  the  Grecian  empire,  even  in  Macedonia  and 
Achaia,  according  as  they  found  it  more  con- 
venient, or  they  enjoyed  greater  liberty.  Thus 
St.  Paul  found  great  numbers  of  them  in  all 
the  cities  of  Greece  when  he  went  to  preach 
the  gospel  there,  about  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  after  the  time  of  Antiochus  the  Great. 
These  Jews  were  half  Greeks,  whom  the  east- 
ern Jews  called  Hellenists  ;  and  they  gave  the 
Gentiles  the  name  of  Hellenes,  which  properly 
signifies  Greeks ;  whence  it  comes  that  in  St. 
Paul's  epistles  Greek  and  Gentile  signify  the 
same  thing.     Rom.  i,  16  ;  ii,  10,  &c. 

The  Jews  could  not  be  so  mixed  with  the 
Greeks,  without  the  latter,  who  were  very  cu- 
rious at  that  time,  getting  some  knowledge  of 
their  religion  and  laws,  especially  after  the 
translation  of  the  sacred  books.  Their  wise 
men  and  true  philosophers  held  them  in  great 
esteem,  as  we  may  learn  by  what  Strabo  wrote 
about  them  long  after.  (Strabo,  lib.  xvi.) 
All  admired  the  magnificence  of  their  temple 
and  exact  order  of  their  ceremonies.  Agrippa 
himself,  son-in-law  of  Augustus,  was  astonished 
at  it.  But  most  of  the  Greeks  at  that  time,  I 
mean  in  the  reign  of  the  Macedonians,  were 
not  capable  of  relishing  the  customs  and  max- 
ims of  the  Jews.  They  were  too  grave  for 
the  people  whom  the  Asiatic  luxury  had  made 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  235 

effeminate,  and  whose  sole  employment  was  in 
trifles.*  There  were,  indeed,  a  great  number 
of  philosophers ;  but  most  of  them  contented 
themselves  with  only  discoursing  upon  virtue, 
and  exercising  themselves  in  disputation.  All 
the  rest  of  the  Greeks  were  possessed  with  cu- 
riosity  and  a  fondness  for  polite  literature  : 
some  applied  themselves  to  rhetoric,  others  to 
poetry  and  music.  Painters,  sculptors,  and 
architects  were  in  great  repute.  Others  spent 
all  their  time  in  gymnastic  exercises,  to  form 
their  bodies  and  make  them  good  wrestlers. 
Others  studied  geometry,  astronomy,  and  natu- 
ral philosophy.  There  were  everywhere  vir- 
tuosi, connoisseurs,  curious  and  idle  people  of 
all  sorts. 

The  manners  of  the  Romans  were  at  that 
time  much  more  solid. f  They  applied  them- 
selves  to  nothing  but  agriculture,  the  knowledge 
of  the  laws  and  war,  and  willingly  left  the  glory 
of  excelling  in  curious  arts  and  sciences  to  the 
Greeks  ;  that  they  might  have  the  more  time 
to  extend  their  conquests,  and  attend  the  go- 
vernment of  their  subjects,  making  politics,  as 
Virgil   says,J    their  principal  concern.     The 

*  Ut  primum  positis  nugari  Graecia  bellis 
Ccepit,  &c. 

Hor.  1.  ii,  ep.  i,  93. 

t  Romse  dulce  diu  fuit  et  solenne  reclusa 
Mane  domo  vigilare,  &c. 

Hor.  1.  ii,  ep.  i,  103. 
t  Excudent  alii  spirantia  mollius  aera,  &c. 

jEneid  vi,  847, 


236  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

Jews  were  still  a  great  deal  more  serious,  as 
they  made  morality  and  the  service  of  God 
their  chief  study.  We  have  a  good  example 
of  it  in  the  book  of  Ecclesiasticus,  written 
about  the  same  time.  Yet  this  was  the  reason 
that  the  Greeks  looked  upon  them  as  an  igno- 
rant people,  seeing  they  would  learn  nothing 
but  their  own  law.  (Joseph,  cont.  App.  1.  i, 
c.  4,  et  1.  ii,  c.  6  ;  Orig.  cont.  Cels.  1.  iv.) 
They  called  them  barbarians,  as  they  did  all 
nations  that  were  not  Greeks,  and  despised 
them  more  than  any  other  strangers,  upon  ac- 
count of  their  religion,  which  appeared  to  them 
austere  and  absurd.  (Judseorum  mos  tristis 
absurdusque. — Tacit.  Hist,  v,  init.)  They  saw 
them  refrain  from  debauchery,  not  out  of  fru- 
gality and  policy,  but  from  a  principle  of  con- 
science :  this  appeared  to  them  too  strict,  and 
they  were  particularly  offended  at  their  Sab- 
baths, their  fasts,  and  distinction  of  meats. 
They  accounted  them  enemies  to  all  mankind. 
They  live  separate  from  every  body  else,  says  a 
Greek  philosopher,  having  nothing  common  with 
us,  neither  altar,  offerings,  prayers,  nor  sacri. 
fees.  They  are  at  a  greater  distance  from  us 
than  the  inhabitants  of  Susa,  Bactria,  and  India. 
(Philostr.  Vit.  Apol.  lib.  v,  c.  11.) 

We  may  add  to  this,  that  the  fear  of  idolatry 
made  the  Jews  reject  sculpture  and  painting, 
(which  arts  the  Greeks  held  in  much  esteem,) 
as  useless,  ridiculous  pieces  of  workmanship, 
and  the  fruits  of  idleness  ;  (Orig.  cont.  Cels. 
1.  iv  ;)  which   is  the  reason  that  idols  are  so 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  237 

often  called  vanity  in  Scripture,  to  show  that 
they  are  vain  things,  that  have  only  a  deceit- 
ful outside,  and  serve  to  no  manner  of  good 
purpose.  Isa.  xliv,  10  ;  Jer.  x,  15.  They 
are  also  called  an  abomination,  Wisdom  xiii, 
13-19,  because  they  cannot  be  sufficiently  de- 
tested when  we  consider  the  stupidity  that  at- 
tributes the  incommunicable  name  of  God  to 
them.  For  the  same  reason  the  Jews  could  not 
hear  without  horror  the  impious  fables  with 
which  the  Greek  poets  were  filled.  Thus  they 
drew  upon  themselves  the  hatred  of  the  gram- 
marians,  whose  profession  it  was  to  explain 
them ;  and  of  the  rhapsodists,  who  made  a  trade 
of  singing  their  heroic  poems  in  public  ;  and 
of  the  actors  of  tragedies  and  comedies,  and  of 
all  others  whose  livelihood  depended  upon  poetry 
and  false  theology. 

The  Jews,  indeed,  made  it  a  rule  not  to  laugh 
at  other  nations,  nor  to  say  any  thing  disre- 
spectful of  their  gods;  (Joseph,  cont.  App.  ;) 
but  it  was  scarce  possible  that  some  word  of 
contempt  should  not  escape  from  them.  Now, 
how  angry  must  a  Greek  grammarian  have 
been,  if  he  had  heard  a  Jew  repeat  a  passage 
out  of  the  prophets  against  idols  ;  if  he  had 
heard  him  assert  that  Homer  was  a  false  pro- 
phet and  impostor,  or  ridicule  the  absurdities 
that  occur  in  the  genealogies,  the  amours,  and 
crimes  of  their  gods  ?  How  could  they  bear 
any  one's  showing  an  abhorrence  to  the  scan- 
dalous impurities  of  the  theatre,  and  the  abo- 
minable ceremonies  of  Bacchus  and  Ceres  :  in 


238  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

a  word,  to  hear  him  maintain  that  the  God  of 
the  Jews  was  the  only  true  God,  and  that  they 
only,  of  all  the  people  upon  earth,  were  in  pos- 
session of  the  true  religion  and  morality  ?  They 
despised  them  the  more  for  not  knowing  how 
to  make  learned  harangues,  or  dispute  in  form  ; 
and  because,  for  a  proof  of  these  great  truths, 
they  chiefly  alleged  facts,  that  is  to  say,  the 
great  miracles  that  God  had  wrought  in  the 
sight  of  their  fathers.  Now,  the  common  peo- 
ple among  the  Greeks  did  not  make  any  dis- 
tinction between  those  miracles  and  the  prodi- 
gies which  they  also  related  in  their  fables ; 
and  philosophers  thought  them  impossible,  be- 
cause they  only  reasoned  from  the  laws  of  na- 
ture, which  they  held  to  be  absolutely  fixed  and 
unalterable.     (Galen  de  usu  Partium.) 

This  being  the  disposition  of  the  Greeks, 
they  listened  the  more  eagerly  to  the  calumnies 
of  the  Phoenicians,  Egyptians,  and  other  ene- 
mies of  the  Jews.  And  thence  proceeded  those 
impertinent  stories  that  Tacitus  tells  us  so 
gravely,  (Hist.  1.  v,  init.,)  when  he  is  explain- 
ing the  origin  of  the  Jews,  and  has  a  mind  to 
act  the  learned  historian  ;  and  which  are  to  be 
met  with  likewise  in  Justin,  who  had  had  the 
same  information.  (Justini  Hist.  lib.  xxxvi, 
c.  2,  3.)  Strabo  does  not  seem  to  know  much 
more  of  the  matter,  though  he  treats  it  more 
sensibly.     (Lib.  xvi.) 

But  beside  these  slanders,  which  might  easily 
have  been  overlooked,  the  Greeks  proceeded  to 
violence  and  persecution.     Thus  Ptolemy  Phi- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  239 

lopater,  after  he  had  lost  the  battle  of  Raphia, 
discharged  his  wrath  upon  the  Jews  :  and  his 
son  Epiphanes,  being  provoked  at  their  not  let- 
ting him  go  into  the  sanctuary,  would  have  them 
exposed  to  elephants,  as  it  is  related  in  the  Mac- 
cabees. Under  Seleucus  Philopater,  king  of 
Syria,  Heliodorus  came  to  plunder  the  sacred 
treasure,  and  nothing  but  a  miracle  prevented 
his  doing  it.  2  Mace,  iii,  7,  dec.  At  last, 
under  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  began  the  greatest 
persecution  they  ever  suffered,  and  which  is  not 
inferior  to  any  that  the  Christians  have  endured 
since.  1  Mace,  i,  &c.  Those  who  died  at 
that  time  for  the  law  of  God  have  been  ordi- 
narily classed  among  the  martyrs. 

They  are  the  first  we  know  of  who  laid  down 
their  lives  in  that  good  cause.  The  three  com- 
panions of  Daniel,  when  they  were  cast  into 
the  furnace,  Dan.  iii,  21,  and  he  himself,  by 
being  exposed  to  the  lions,  had  all  the  merit  of 
martyrdom  ;  but  God  wrought  miracles  to  pre- 
serve them.  Eleazar,  the  seven  brethren,  and  the 
rest  that  are  mentioned  in  the  history  of  the  Mac- 
cabees, 2  Mace,  vi,  18  ;  vii,  really  gave  up  their 
lives  for  the  sake  of  God  and  the  law  of  their 
fathers,  which  is  the  first  example  that  I  know  of 
this  kind  of  virtue  in  the  whole  history  of  the 
world.  We  see  no  infidel,  not  even  one  of  the 
philosophers,  who  chose  to  suffer  death,  and  the 
most  cruel  punishment,  rather  than  violate  his 
religion  or  the  laws  of  his  country. 

Josephus  boldly  reproaches  the  Gentiles  with 
it.    Many  captives,  says  he,  of  our  nation  have 


240  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

suffered  all  sorts  of  torment  and  death  in  tlie 
theatres,  and  upon  divers  occasions,  rather  tlian 
speak  tlw  least  word  against  the  law,  and  the 
other  Scriptures :  but  where  is  the  Greek  that 
icoidd  not  let  all  the  books  of  his  nation  be  burned 
rather  than  suffer  any  harm  hi?nselfl  (Cont. 
App.  lib.  i.) 

Indeed,  some  Jews  were  overcome  by  perse- 
cution :  but  then  they  entirely  renounced  their 
religion  and  laws,  and  used  artifice  to  disguise 
their  circumcision  :  so  that  they  were  no  longer 
accounted  Jews.  And  such  as  continued  faith- 
ful were  so  zealous  for  their  law  and  liberty, 
that  at  last  they  took  up  arms  to  defend  them- 
selves against  the  Syrian  kings.  These  princes 
openly  violated  all  the  privileges  that  had  been 
granted  to  the  Jews  by  the  kings  of  Persia,  and 
confirmed  by  Alexander  and  the  other  Mace- 
donian kings  ;  and  seemed  determined  to  abo- 
lish the  true  religion,  which  was  still  at  that 
time  confined  to  a  particular  people  and  country. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Reign  of  the  Asmoneans. 

We  are  now  come  to  the  time  of  the  Mac- 
cabees, when  the  Jewish  nation  raised  itself  up 
again,  and  shone  with  a  new  lustre.  They 
were  no  longer  a  poor  people,  that  aspired  no 
higher  than  to  live  in  peace,  under  the  conduct 
of  their  high  priest  and  elders  ;  whose  happi- 


MANNERS   OP    THE    ISRAELITES*  241 

ness  only  consisted  in  being  at  liberty  to  cul- 
tivate their  lands,  and  serve  God  in  their  own 
way.  They  became  a  state  entirely  indepen- 
dent, supported  by  good  troops,  strong  garri- 
sons, and  alliances,  not  only  with  their  neigh- 
bouring princes,  but  with  remote  kingdoms, 
even  Rome  itself.  1  Mace,  xiv,  4,  18.  The 
kings  of  Egypt  and  Syria,  who  had  used  them 
so  ill,  were  forced  afterward  to  court  their 
friendship.  They  also  made  conquests  :  John 
Hyrcanus  took  Sichem  and  Gerizim,  and  de- 
stroyed the  temple  of  the  Samaritans  ;  (Joseph. 
Ant.  xiii,  17  ;)  so  absolute  was  he  over  all  the 
land  of  Israel.  He  extended  his  dominions  into 
Syria,  where  he  conquered  several  towns,  after 
the  death  of  Antiochus  Sidetes  ;  and  into  Idu- 
mea,  which  he  so  entirely  subdued,  that  he  ob- 
liged the  inhabitants  to  be  circumcised  and 
observe  the  law  of  Moses,  as  being  incorporated 
into  the  nation  of  the  Jews.  His  son  Aristo- 
bulus  added  the  ensigns  of  royalty  to  the  real 
power,  taking  the  diadem  and  title  of  king  : 
(Joseph.  Ant.  xiii,  c.  20,  21,  22  :)  and  Alex- 
ander Jannaeus  made  still  greater  conquests. 

But  this  glory  of  the  Jews  was  of  short  con- 
tinuance :  for,  though  the  weakening  the  king- 
doms of  Egypt  and  Syria  had  served  to  exalt 
them,  the  entire  ruin  of  those  two  kingdoms 
brought  on  theirs  too,  by  the  vast  addition  it 
made  to  the  Roman  power.  Indeed,  the  begin- 
ning of  their  decay  was  occasioned  by  their 
domestic  quarrels,  and  the  continual  misunder- 
standings between  the  two  sons  of  Alexander 

16 


242  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

Jannaeus,  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus.  In  short, 
they  had  enjoyed  their  liberty  but  fourscore 
years,  since  Simeon  had  been  declared  head 
of  the  nation,  after  casting  off  the  Grecian 
yoke,  till  Pompey,  invited  by  Hyrcanus,  took 
Jerusalem,  entered  into  the  temple,  and  made 
the  Jews  tributaries. 

After  that  they  were  in  a  miserable  condi- 
tion for  above  twenty  years  :  divided  by  the 
parties  of  the  two  brothers,  and  plundered  by 
the  Romans,  (Joseph.  Ant.  xiv,  8,  12,)  who 
took  from  them,  at  different  times,  above  ten 
thousand  talents,  which  is  about  one  million, 
eight  hundred  and  thirty. three  thousand,  three 
hundred  and  fifty  pounds  sterling.  After  the 
defeat  of  Brutus  and  Cassius,  the  Parthians, 
taking  advantage  of  Mark  Antony's  weakness, 
who  was  governor  of  the  east,  made  themselves 
masters  of  Syria  and  Palestine,  and  took  Hyr- 
canus captive. 

During  all  the  time  of  the  Roman  civil  wars, 
and  while  the  Parthians  had  the  better  of  them, 
Palestine  was  exposed  to  cruel  ravages  by  so 
many  armies  of  difforent  nations  passing  through 
it,  and  by  the  incursions  of  neighbouring  peo- 
ple, particularly  the  Arabians. 

It  is  true,  it  recovered  again  a  little  under 
Herod :  (Joseph.  Ant.  xv  :)  he  brought  back 
peace  and  plenty  to  it :  he  was  powerful,  rich, 
and  lived  in  great  state.  But  it  cannot  be  said 
the  Jews  were  free  in  his  time.  He  was  not 
so  himself,  and  depended  entirely  upon  the  Ro- 
man emperors.     He  was  a  foreigner,  by  birth 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  243 

an  Idumean,  had  no  religion,  and  only  kept  up 
the  appearance  of  it  to  serve  political  purposes. 
He  destined  the  succession  of  the  high  priests, 
sending  for  one  Hananiel  from  Babylon,  a  des- 
picable man,  though  of  the  sacerdotal  family  ; 
(Joseph.  Ant.  xv,  c.  2  ;)  after  whom  they  had 
no  high  priests  but  such  and  as  many  as  the 
kings  pleased. 

When  Herod  was  dead,  there  was  no  longer 
any  power  in  Judea.  His  sons  only  kept  part 
of  his  kingdom,  and  that  not  long.  Judea  had 
Roman  governors,  depending  upon  the  procon- 
sul of  Syria.  At  last  the  Jews  were  banished 
out  of  it,  and  reduced  to  their  present  condi- 
tion. This,  therefore,  is  the  last  time  that  any 
account  is  to  be  made  of  them  as  a  nation, 
from  their  liberty  under  Simon  and  the  Asmo- 
neans  till  their  destruction  under  Vespasian. 
It  is  a  period  of  about  two  hundred  years,  tak- 
ing in  most  part  of  the  history  of  the  Macca- 
bees, and  all  that  of  the  New  Testament,  during 
which  time  the  manners  of  the  Jews  were  very 
different  from  what  they  were  before. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Manners  of  the  Jews  of  later  Times. 

These  later  Jews  were  mingled  with  many 
nations.  There  were  some  of  them  settled  "  in 
every  country  under  heaven,"  Acts  ii,  5,  as 
the  Scripture  says.     Many  came  to  dwell  in 


244  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Judea,  or  at  least  made  some  journeys  of  devo- 
tion thither,  to  sacrifice  in  the  only  temple 
where  it  was  lawful  to  do  so.  Besides,  there 
were  always  from  time  to  time  some  Gentiles 
who  were  made  converts.  Thus  the  Jews 
were,  properly  speaking,  no  longer  a  people  by 
themselves,  using  the  same  language  and  cus- 
toms, for  many  others  began  to  unite  under  the 
same  religion.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Holy 
Land  consisted  of  different  nations,  as  Idume- 
ans  and  other  Arabians,  Egyptians,  Syrians, 
and  Creeks. 

All  the  Jews  still  looked  upon  themselves  as 
brethren,  and  assisted  each  other  in  whatever 
part  of  the  world  they  were  dispersed.  They 
exercised  hospitality  toward  such  as  travelled  ; 
and  relieved  the  poor  in  all  provinces,  but  es- 
pecially in  Judea.  As  they  that  were  at  a  dis- 
tance could  not  pay  their  tenths  and  first  fruits 
in  kind,  nor  come  to  the  temple  to  make  their 
offerings  upon  all  festivals,  they  turned  all  these 
dues  into  money,  and  these  contributions  alto- 
gether made  up  a  considerable  sum  ;  (Joseph. 
Ant.  xiv,  12  ;)  which  each  province  sent  an- 
nually to  Jerusalem  for  the  expense  of  sacri- 
fices and  maintaining  the  priests  and  poor. 
This  is  the  Jewish  gold  that  Tullv  speaks  of. 
(Pro  Flacco.) 

These  collections  continued  manv  years  after 
the  destruction  of  the  temple.  (Epiph.  hoer. 
xxx,  n.  4,  7,  11.)  The  chief  of  the  nation  sent 
out  senators  at  certain  times,  who  commonly 
resided  near  him,  and  were  called  apostles,  that 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  245 

is  to  say,  envoys.  They  went  through  the  pro- 
vinces to  visit  the  synagogues,  and  had  autho- 
rity over  such  as  presided  there,  and  over  the 
elders  and  ministers,  and  at  the  same  time  car- 
ried back  the  collections  to  the  patriarch.  But 
the  Christian  emperors  forbade  the  continuance 
of  it.  (Lib.  iv,  Cod.  de  Judaeis.)  The  patri- 
archs came  to  this  dignity  by  succession  ;  so 
that  they  were  often  infants.  (Hier.  in  Isaiah 
iii,  4.)  But  before  Jerusalem  was  destroyed, 
some  of  the  heads  of  their  nation  resided  in 
every  province,  who  were  called  in  Greek 
ethnarchs,  and  judged  them  by  their  own  law. 
Those  of  Egypt  are  famous,  among  others. 

In  Judea  the  Jews  were  governed,  as  before, 
by  a  council  of  seventy-two  elders,  which  they 
called  sanhedrim,  from  a  Greek  word  cor- 
rupted ;*  and  these  are  tJie  elders  of  the  people 
mentioned  in  the  gospel.  Luke  xxii,  6G,  &c. 
In  every  synagogue  there  was  a  head  or  ruler 
of  it,  as  we  see  in  the  New  Testament.  Luke 
viii,  41.  There  were  priests  or  elders,  and 
deacons  or  servants,  named  Hazanin,  to  take 
care  of  the  synagogue,  and  present  the  book  to 
the  doctor  who  instructed  them.  There  were 
also  twenty-three  judges  in  each  city,  as  has 
been  said  before.  For  it  is  to  this  time  chiefly 
that  all  which  the  Talmud  says  concerning  the 
form  of  judgments  and  the  execution  of  justice 
must  be  referred.     (Cod.  Sanlied.  Maccoth.) 

*  Epiph.  haer.  xxx,  n.  1.  yv-nftJB  sanhedrin, 
from  the  Greek  Hvvedpiov ;  from  cvv  together,  and 
k6pa  a  seat,  an  assembly  of  counsellors. 


246  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  Jews  of  Judea  always  applied  them- 
selves  to  tillage,  breeding  of  cattle,  and  all 
kinds  of  husbandry.  There  are  some  medals 
still  remaining,  as  old  as  the  times  of  the  Mac- 
cabees, upon  which  are  to  be  seen  ears  of  corn 
and  measures,  (Vales,  in  Euseb.  vii,  10; 
Palad.  Vita  Chrysost.,)  to  show  the  fertility 
of  the  country,  and  the  honour  in  which  they 
held  agriculture.  Thus  the  Apocrypha  de- 
scribes to  us  the  prosperity  of  Simon's  go- 
vernment :  Then  did  they  till  their  ground  in 
peace,  and  the  earth  gave  her  increase,  and 
the  trees  of  the  field  their  fruit :  the  ancient 
men  sat  all  in  the  streets  consulting  together 
for  the  good  of  the  country,  and  the  young 
men  put  on  glorious  and  warlike  apparel. 
He  provided  victuals  for  the  cities,  and  sent 
them  in  all  manner  of  munition,  so  that  his 
honourable  name  was  renowned  unto  the  end 
of  the  world.  He  made  peace  in  the  land, 
and  Israel  rejoiced  with  great  joy.  For  every 
man  sat  under  his  vine  and  his  fig  tree,  and 
there  was  none  to  disquiet  them,  1  Mace, 
xiv,  8,  &c.  And  the  author  of  Ecclesiasticus 
has  not  omitted  taking  notice  of  this  duty. 
Hate  not  laborious  work,  neither  husbandry, 
say  he,  which  the  Most  High  has  ordained, 
Ecclus.  vii,  15. 

There  are  some  remains  of  old  customs 
in  every  nation  :  there  were  still  at  that  time 
husbandmen  of  good  families  in  Italy  and 
Sicily,  and  there  will  always  be  hunters  in 
Germany. 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  247 

Most  of  the  parables  in  the  gospel  are  taken 
from  a  country  life  :  the  sower,  the  good  seed, 
the  tares,  the  vineyard,  the  good  tree,  the 
bad  tree,  the  strayed  sheep,  the  good  shepherd ; 
and  all  this  often  spoken  in  cities,  and  in  Je- 
rusalem itself.  Indeed,  many  parables  show  us 
that  trading  with  money  was  common  among 
the  Jews,  and  that  there  were  bankers  and 
usurers  by  profession.  Many  were  publicans, 
that  is,  farmers  of  the  tribute  and  revenues  : 
but  this  was  an  office  that  drew  upon  them  the 
public  hatred.  Joseph  the  son  of  Tobit  is  a 
notorious  example,  who  got  all  the  tribute  of 
Syria  and  Phoenicia  awarded  to  him  under 
Ptolemy  Epiphanes,  and  acquired  immense 
riches  by  it.     (Joseph.  Ant.  xii,  4.) 

If  there  were  bankers  and  tax-gatherers 
among  the  Jews,  there  is  more  reason  to  think 
there  were  wholesale  and  retail  merchants  ; 
both  which  are  mentioned  by  the  author  of 
Ecclesiasticus,  where  he  says  he  looked  upon 
them  as  dangerous  trades:  A  merchant  can 
hardly  keep  himself  from  doing  wrong,  and  a 
huckster  shall  not  be  freed  from  sin,  Ecclus. 
xxvi,  29.  He  goes  to  the  source  of  the  evil, 
and  adds,  That  the  desire  of  riches  blindeth 
men,  and  makes  them  fall  into  sin ;  and  that 
as  a  nail  sticks  fast  between  the  joinings  of  the 
stones,  so  doth  sin  stick  close  between  buying 
and  selling,  Ecclus.  xxvii,  2.  Thus  did  God 
call  back  his  people  to  their  ancient  customs, 
showing  them  the  powerful  reasons  that  in- 
duced their  fathers  not  to  trade. 


248  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

But  they  were  not  much  better  for  his  instruc- 
tions ;  and  since  their  utter  reprobation  they 
have  always  been  departing  farther  and  farther 
from  the  simple  and  natural  way  in  which  the 
Israelites  lived.  It  is  a  long  time  since  the 
Jews  had  any  lands,  or  followed  husbandry  ; 
they  live  only  by  trade,  and  by  the  worst  sort 
of  it  too.  They  are  retailers,  brokers,  and 
usurers ;  their  whole  substance  consists  only 
in  money,  and  other  movables  ;  few  of  them 
have  habitations  of  their  own  in  any  city. 

Many  profess  physic,  and  have  done  so  ever 
since  the  time  I  am  speaking  of.  The  author 
of  Ecclesiasticus  shows  it,  who  recommends 
the  use  of  this  art,  and  the  composition  of  me- 
dicine. Ecclus.  xxxviii,  1-15.  There  is  men- 
tion made  in  the  gospel  of  a  woman  who  had 
spent  all  that  she  had  upon  physicians.  Luke 
viii,  43.  What  the  forementioned  author  says 
afterward  of  the  great  leisure  required  for  the 
study  of  wisdom,  Ecclus.  xxxviii,  24,  seems  to 
prove  that  the  scribes  or  doctors  made  it  their 
whole  employment ;  but  he  shows  at  the  same 
time  the  necessity  of  artificers,  and  there  were 
then  many  among  the  Jews.  Ecclus.  xxxviii, 
27,  &c.  The  apostles,  Joseph,  and  Jesus 
Christ  himself,  are  undeniable  examples  of  it ; 
and  what  is  most  remarkable,  St.  Paul,  though 
brought  up  to  letters,  was  master  likewise  of  a 
trade.  The  Jews  relate  the  same  of  their  most 
celebrated  rabbins.     (Talmud.) 


MANNERS    OF    fHE    ISRAELITES.  249 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Their  Sects  and  Superstitions. 

The  difference  of  sects  began  at  that  time  : 
under  Jonathan   the  son    of  Mattathias  there 
were   already  Pharisees,    Sadducees,  and   Es- 
scnes.     (Joseph.  Ant.  xiii,  9;   xviii,  2.)     The 
Pharisees  joined  the  traditions  of  the  fathers  to 
the  text  of  the  law,  which  were  preserved  with- 
out   writing ;  and    though    the  doctrine  they 
maintained    was    good    at    the   bottom,    they 
mixed    a   great    many    superstitions    with    it. 
They  believed  in  fate,  moderated  by  free  will, 
or  rather  by  providence,  which  guides  it.     The 
Sadducees,  who  were  a  sort  of  Deists,  imputed 
all  to  free  will.     They  acknowledged  only  the 
five  books  of  Moses  as  divine,  and  these  they 
interpreted  literally,  and  pretended  that  they 
did  not  oblige  them  to  believe  a  resurrection,  or 
the  immortality  of  the  soul,  or  that  there  were 
angels  or  spirits.     Acts  xxiii,  8.     Thus  they 
served  God  only  for  a   temporal  reward,  and 
gave  themselves  up  much  to  sensual  pleasures. 
They  had  little  agreement  among  themselves, 
and  but  small  authority  with  the  people.    Their 
number    was    not   great  ;   but  they  were    the 
chief  of  the  nation,  and  even  many  of  them 
priests.     The   common   people  were  more  at- 
tached to  the  Pharisees,  who*  kept  an  outward 
show  of  great  piety.     Queen  Alexandra  gave 
them  considerable  power  in  the  minority  of  her 
sons.     (Joseph.  Bell,  i,  4.) 


250  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  sect  of  Essenes  was  the  most  singular. 
They  avoided  living  in  great  towns,  their  goods 
were  in  common,  and  their  diet  very  plain. 
(Ibid,  ii,  7.)  They  spent  a  great  deal  of  time 
in  prayer,  arid  i  meditating  upon  the  law. 
Their  manner  of  life  was  very  like  that  of  the 
prophets  and  Rechabites.  Some  of  them,  too, 
observed  a  perfect  continence,  leading  a  life  al- 
together contemplative,  and  in  such  purity  that 
many  of  the  fathers  have  taken  them  for 
Christians.  They  were  a  very  simple  and  up- 
right people,  and  are  never  reprehended  by 
Christ  or  his  apostles. 

The  Pharisees  lived  in  the  midst  of  the 
world,  in  great  amity  with  one  another,  leading 
a  plain  and  outwardly  strict  life ;  but  most  of 
them  were  interested,  ambitious,  and  covetous. 
They  valued  themselves  on  a  great  exactness 
in  the  outward  performance  of  the  law.  Matt, 
xxiii,  23  :  Mark  vii,  2.  They  gave  tithes  not 
only  of  large  fruits,  but  of  the  smallest  herbs,  as 
cummin,  mint,  and  anise.  They  took  great 
care  to  wash  themselves,  to  purify  their  cups, 
their  plate,  and  all  their  furniture.  They 
kept  the  Sabbath  so  scrupulously,  that  they 
made  it  a  crime  in  our  Saviour  to  moisten  a  bit 
of  clay  at  the  end  of  his  finger,  John  ix,  6  ;  and 
in  his  disciples  to  pluck  some  ears  of  corn  to  eat 
as  they  passed  along,  Matt,  xii,  2.  They 
fasted  often,  many  of  them  twice  a  week,  Luke 
xviii,  12  ;  i.  e.,  on  Mondays  and  Thursdays. 
They  affected  wearing  the  totaphol*  or  phylac- 

*  TiStSliD    totphot.    according    to    R.    S.    Jarchi, 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  251 

teries  on  the  borders  of  their  garments,  together 
with  their  tsilsilh  or  fringes  much  larger  than 
ordinary.  Matt,  xxiii,  5.  The  totaphot, 
tephittin,  or  phylacteries,  are  scraps  of  writing, 
containing  some  passages  of  the  law,  fastened 
upon  their  forehead  and  left  arm,  in  obedience 
to  the  command  of  having  the  law  of  God  al- 
ways before  their  eyes  or  in  their  hands. 
Deut.  vi,  8.  The  tsitsiih  or  fringes  were  of 
different  colours,  and  they  were  ordered  to 
wear  them  on  the  borders  of  their  garments,  that 
they  might  look  upon  them,  and  remember  the 
commandments  of  God.  Num.  xv,  38.  The 
Jews  even  to  this  day  wear  these  outward 
marks  of  religion,  when  they  go  to  the  syna- 
gogue ;  but  upon  working  days  only  ;  for  upon 
the  Sabbath  and  feast  days  they  pretend  they 
have  no  occasion  for  these  remembrancers.* 

signifies  two  and  tow,  or  twice  two  >  ^tD  signifies  two 
in  the  language  of  theCathpians,  (a  people  of  Spain,) 
and  ffe  the  same  in  the  African  or  Punic  tongue. 
Hence  the  totphot  are  always  divided  into  four  com- 
partments.    (See  Jarchi  on  Exod.  xiii,  16.) 

*  Buxtorf.  Synagog.  Jud.  c.  4.  Phylacteries, 
<j)vlaKT7/pia  from  <j>v%<zoau,  to  keep  or  preserve, 
were  small  slips  of  parchment  or  vellum,  on  whirl; 
certain  portions  of  the  law  were  written.  These  the 
Jews  tied  about  their  foreheads  and  wrists.  1.  To 
put  them  in  mind  of  those  precepts  which  they  should 
constantly  observe.  2.  To  procure  them  reverence 
and  respect  in  the  sight  of  the  heathen  ;  and  3.  To  act 
as  amulets  or  charms  to  drive  away  evil  spirits.  The 
first  ws<?  of  these  phylacteries  is  evident  from  their 
name.  The  second  use  appears  from  what  is  said  on 
the  subject  from  Gcmara,  Beracot/i,  quoted  by  Kypke. 
11  Whence    is  it  proved    that  phylacteries  (yi^sn 


252  MAXXERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  Pharisees  gave  alms  in  public,  and  made 
their  faces  that  they  might  look  as  if  they 
fasted  much.     Matt,  vi,  2,  5,  16-18.     For  an 

tephilin)  are  the  strength  of  Israel  1  Ans.  From 
what  is  written,  Deut.  xxviii,  10.  All  the  people  of 
the  earth  shall  see  that  thou  art  called  by  the  name  of 
mnh  Jehovah  ;  and  they  shall  be  afraid  of  thee." 
The  third  use  of  them  appears  from  the  Tar  gum  on 
Cant,  viii,  3.  His  left  hand  is  under  my  head,  &c. 
"  The  congregation  of  Israel  hath  said,  I  am  elect 
above  all  people,  because  I  bind  my  phylacteries  on 
my  left  hand  and  on  my  head,  and  the  scroll  is  fixed 
to  the  right  side  of  my  gate,  the  third  part  of  which 
looks  to  my  bedchamber,  that  demons  may  not  be  per- 
mitted to  injure  me.'' 

An  original  phylactery  lies  now  before  me.  It  is  a 
piece  of  fine  vellum  about  eighteen  inches  long,  and 
an  inch  and  a  quarter  broad.  It  is  divided  into  four  un- 
qual  compartments;  in  the  ^/.s£  are  written  in  a  very 
fair  character  (with  many  apices  after  the  mode  of  the 
German  Jews)  the  first  ten  verses  of  Exod.  xiii.  In 
the  second  compartment  is  written  from  the  eleventh 
to  the  sixteenth  verse  of  toe  same  chapter,  inclusive. 

In  the  third,  from  the  fourth  to  the  ninth  verse,  in- 
clusive, of  Deut.  vi,  beginning  with,  Hear,  O  Israel, 

In  the  fourth,  from  the  thirteenth  to  the  twenty- 
first  verse,  inclusive,  of  Deut.  xi,  And  it  shall  come  to 
pass,  tf«c.  These  passages  seem  to  be  chosen  in  vin- 
dication of  the  use  of  the  phylactery  itself,  as  the 
reader  will  see  in  consulting  them.  Bind  them  up  for 
a  sign  upon  thy  hand,  and  for  frontlets  between  thy 
eyes.  Write  them  upon  the  posts  of  thu  house,  and  upon 
t'iu  gales; — all  which  command  the  Jews  took  in  the 
liost  literal  sense.  Even  the  phylactery  became  an 
important  appendage  to  a  Pharisee's  character  ;  inso- 
much that  some  of  this  sect  wore  them  very  broad, 
either  that  they  might  have  the  more  written  on  them, 
or  that  the  characters  being  larger  they  might  be  the 
more  visible,  and  that  they  might  hereby  acquire 
greater  esteem  among  the  common  people,     For  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  253 

unclean  person  to  touch  them  was  reckoned 
the  highest  affront  ;  and  such  they  esteemed 
not  only  the  Gentiles  and  public  sinners,  but 
all  that  were  of  any  odious  profession.  In 
short,  most  of  them  were  devout  only  out  of  in- 
terest :  they  misled  ignorant  people  by  their 
specious  discourses,  and  the  women  even 
stripped  themselves  of  whatever  was  valuable, 
to  enrich  them  ;  and,  under  pretence  that  they 
were  the  people  of  God  with  whom  the  law 
was  deposited,  they  despised  the  Greeks  and 
Romans,  and  all  the  nations  upon  earth. 

Wc  still  see  in  the  books  of  the  Jews  these 
traditions,  of  which  the  Pharisees  made  so  great 
a  mystery  from  time  to  time,  and  which  were 
written  about  a  hundred  years  after  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ.  It  is  hardly  possible  for  a 
Christian  to  conceive  the  frivolous  questions 
with  which  these  books  are  filled  ;  as,  Whether 
it  be  lawful  on  the  Sabbath  day  to  get  upon  an 
ass  to  take  it  to  the  water,  or  whether  it  must 
be  led  by  the  halter?  Whether  one  may  walk 
over  new  sown  land,  because  one  runs  a 
hazard  of  taking  up  some  grains  with  the  foot, 

same  reason  they  wore  the  fringes  of  their  garments 
of  an  unusual  length.  Moses  had  commanded,  Num. 
xv,  38,  39,  the  children  of  Isreal  to  put  fringes  to  the 
borders  of  their  garments,  that,  when  they  looked  even 
upon  these  distinct  threads,  they  might  remember  not 
only  the  law  in  general,  but  alsa  the  very  minute  or 
smaller  parts  of  all  the  precepts,  rites,  and  ceremonies 
belonging  to  it.  As  these  hypocrites  were  destitute 
of  the  life  and  power  of  religion  within,  they  endea- 
voured to  supply  its  place  by  phylacteries  and  fringes 
without. 


254  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  consequently  of  sowing  them  ?  Whether 
it  be  permitted  on  that  day  to  write  as  many 
letters  of  the  alphabet  as  will  make  sense?  If 
it  be  lawful  to  eat  an  egg  laid  on  the  Sabbath 
the  same  day  ?  About  purifying  the  old  leaven 
before  the  passover :  whether  they  must  begin 
again  to  purify  a  house,  if  they  should  see  a 
mouse  running  across  it  with  a  crumb  of 
bread  ?  If  it  be  lawful  to  keep  pasted  paper,  or 
any  plaster  that  has  flour  in  it  ?  If  it  be  lawful 
to  eat  what  has  been  dressed  with  the  coals  that 
remain  after  the  old  leaven  is  burned  ?  (Bux- 
torf.  Synag.  cap.  xi.)  And  a  thousand  of 
other  such  cases  of  conscience,  with  which 
the  Talmud  and  its  commentaries  arc  stuffed. 

Thus  the  Jews  forgot  the  greatness  and  ma- 
jesty of  the  law  of  God,  applying  themselves  to 
mean  and  trifling  things  ;  and  were  now  stupid 
and  ignorant  in  comparison  of  the  Greeks,  who 
reasoned  upon  more  useful  and  elevated  subjects 
in  their  schools,  and  who  at  least  were  polite 
and  agreeable,  if  not  virtuous. 

Not  but  there  were  always  some  Jews  more 
curious  than  the  rest,  who  took  pains  to  speak 
Greek  correctly,  read  Greek  books,  and  applied 
to  their  studies,  as  grammar,  rhetoric,  and 
philosophy.  Such  a  one  was  Aristobulus,  a 
peripatetic  philosopher,  preceptor  to  Ptolemy 
Philometor  ;  and  such  were  Eupolemus,  De- 
metrius, and  the  two  Philos.  Some  of  them 
wrote  histories  in  Greek,  and  after  the  Greek 
manner  ;  as  Jason  of  Cyrene  ;  and  the  author 
of  the  second  book  of  Maccabees,  chap,  ii,  23, 


3IANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  235 

who  has  abridged  his  works  ;  and  Josephus,  the 
celebrated  historian. 

Most  of  the  Jews  that  studied  Greek  lived  in 
Alexandria.  Others  were  content  to  speak 
Greek  so  as  to  be  understood,  that  is,  badly, 
and  'always  retaining  the  turn  of  their  native 
language  ;  and  it  is  in  this  compound  Greek 
that  the  translation  of  the  Old  Testament,  and 
the  original  of  the  New,  are  written.  The 
apostles  and  evangelists  thought  it  sufficient  to 
write  in  a  clear,  concise  manner,  despising  all 
ornaments  of  language,  and  making  use  of  that 
which  was  most  easy  to  be  understood  by  the 
common  people  of  their  own  nation  ;  so  that, 
to  understand  their  Greek  perfectly,  one  must 
be  acquainted  with  Hebrew  and  Syriac* 

The  Jews  of  these  later  times  employed 
themselves  much  in  reading  their  law,  and  the 
Holy  Scriptures  in  general.  They  were  not 
satisfied  with  expounding  them  according  to  the 
letter  :  they  found  out  several  senses  in  them, 
expressed  by  allegories  and  divers  metaphors  : 
we  see  it  not  only  in  the  New  Testament,  and 
the  writings  of  the  most  ancient  fathers  in  con- 
troversy with  them,  (Justin.  Dial,  cum  Tryph.,) 
but  by  the  books  of  Philo,  the  Talmud,  and 
oldest  Hebrew  commentators  upon  the  law, 
which  they  call  great  Genesis,  great  Exodus, 

*  In  order  to  understand  the  phraseology  of  the  New 
Testament  properly,  the  Septuagint  should  be  care- 
fully studied;  and,  indeed,  a  knowledge  of  Hebrew  is 
in  many  respects  essential  to  a  thorough  understand- 
ing of  both. 


256  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  so  on.  (Bereshith  Rabba,  &c.)  They 
held  these  figurative  senses  by  tradition  from 
their  fathers. 

But,  to  say  all  at  once,  the  manners  of  the 
Jews  in  those  times  were  excessively  corrupt. 
They  were  ridiculously  proud  of  being  de- 
scended from  Abraham,  and  puffed  up  with  the 
promises  of  the  Messiah's  kingdom,  which  they 
knew  to  be  near,  and  imagined  would  abound 
with  victories  and  all  manner  of  temporal  pros- 
perity. They  were  selfish,  avaricious,  and 
sordid,  especially  the  Pharisees,  who  were  in 
general  great  hypocrites  :  they  were  wavering 
and  unfaithful,  always  ripe  for  sedition  and  re- 
volt, under  a  pretence  of  casting  off  the  yoke 
of  the  Gentiles.  In  short,  they  were  violent 
and  cruel,  as  appears  by  what  they  made  our 
Saviour  and  his  apostles  undergo,  and  the  un- 
exampled injuries  they  did  one  another,  both  in 
the  time  of  the  civil  war  and  the  last  siege  of 
Jerusalem. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The   true  Israelites. 


However,  it  was  among  these  people  that  the 
tradition  of  virtue  was  preserved,  as  well  as  that 
of  doctrine  and  religion.  In  this  last  time 
they  had  still  splendid  examples  of  holiness  ; 
Zachariah  and  Elizabeth  his  wife,  Joseph,  old 
Simeon,    Anna    the    prophetess,    Nathanael, 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  25? 

Gamaliel,  the  great  doctor,  and  many  others 
taken  notice  of  in  the  history  of  the  New 
Testament.  All  these  holy  persons,  and  the 
spiritual  Jews  in  general,  that  were  cir- 
cumcised in  heart,  as  well  as  body,  were 
children  of  Abraham,  more  by  imitation  of 
his  faith,  than  by  birth.  They  firmly  be- 
lieved the  prophecies  and  promises  of  God; 
they  waited  with  patience  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  Israel  and  the  reign  of  the  Mes- 
siah, which  they  vehemently  wished  for  ;  but 
they  plainly  saw  they  were  not  to  confine  their 
hopes  to  this  life,  but  believed  the  resurrection, 
and  expected  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Thus 
the  grace  of  the  gospel  being  superadded  to  such 
holy  dispositions,  it  was  easy  to  make  perfect 
Christians  of  these  true  Israelites. 

17 


258  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


PART    IV. 

Containing  farther  particulars  concerning  the  cus- 
toms, manners,  &c,  of  the  Israelites,  in  which 
a  variety  of  subjects,  either  not  touched  before, 
or  but  slightly  handled,  are  considered  more  at 
large. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Division  of  the  Hebrews  into  Tribes  and  Families. 

The  Hebrews  were  divided  into  twelve 
tribes,  according  to  the  number  of  the  sons  of 
Jacob.  But  God  reserved  to  himself  the  pos- 
terity of  Levi,  and  consecrated  them  to  the 
service  of  his  altars.  So  that  tribe  could  not 
properly  be  reckoned  among  the  twelve  tribes  ; 
but  then  Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  the  two  sons 
of  Joseph,  made  two  different  tribes,  which 
thereby  supplied  its  place.  The  tribe  of  Levi 
was  divided  into  three  families,  which  derived 
their  names  and  origin  from  the  three  sons  of 
Levi.  From  Gershon  came  the  Gershonites  ; 
from  Kohath,  the  Kohathites  ;  from  Merari,  the 
Merarites.  Kohath,  the  second  son  of  Levi, 
had  Amram,  the  father  of  Aaron  and  Moses  ; 
the  latter  of  which  was  the  governor  and  law- 
giver of  the  Hebrews,  the  former  their  high 
priest.  Aaron  had  four  sons,  Nadab,  Abihu, 
Eleazar,  and  Ithamar.  After  the  death  of  the 
two  former,  the  priesthood  remained  with  the 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  259 

two  others,  whose  posterity  David  divided  into 
twenty-four  classes,  who  performed  the  offices 
of  the  priesthood  weekly,  in  their  turns. 
1  Chron.  xxiv.  Sixteen  of  these  classes  were 
in  the  family  of  Eleazar  ;  whose  names  and 
order  were  as  follow  : — 

1.  Jehoiarib,  2.  Jedaiah,  3.  Harim,  4.  So- 
orim,  5.  Malchijah,  6.  Mijamim,  7.  Hakkoz, 
8.  Abijah,  9.  Jeshuah,  10.  Shecaiah,  11.  Eli- 
ashib,  12.  Jakim,  13.  Huppah,  14.  Jcshebeah, 
15.  Bilgah,  16.  Immer.  So  that  there  were 
but  eight  in  the  family  of  Ithamar,  viz., 
17.  Hezir,  18.  Aphscs,  19.  Pethahiah,  20.  Je- 
hczokel,  or,  Ezechiel,  21.  Jachin,  22.  Gamul, 
23.  Delaiah,  24.  Maaziah. 

The  other  tribes  were  divided  into  different 
families  in  the  same  manner,  and  their  names, 
were  these : — 

The  tribe  of  Reuben  had  four  families  ;  the 
Hanochites,  the  Palluites,  the  Hesronites,  the 
Carmites. 

The  tribe  of  $imeo?i  had  five ;  the  Nemuel- 
ites,  the  Jaminites,  the  Jachinites,  the  Zarhites, 
the  Shaulites. 

The  tribe  of  Gad  had  seven  ;  the  Zephon- 
ites,  the  Haggites,  the  Shanites,  the  Oznites, 
the  Erites,  the  Arodites,  the  Arelites. 

The  tribe  of  Judali  had  five  ;  the  Shelan- 
ites,  the  Pharzites,  the  Zarhites,  the  Hesron- 
ites, the  Hamulites. 

The  tribe  of  Issacliar  had  four ;  the  Tola- 
ites,  the  Punites,  the  Jashubites,  the  Shrimron- 
ites. 


260  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

The  tribe  of  Zebulun  had  three  ;  the  Sard- 
ites,  the  Elonites,  the  Jahleelites. 

The  tribe  of  Manasseh  had  eight ;  the  Ma- 
chirites,  the  Gileadites,  the  Jeezerites,  the  He- 
lekites,  the  Arielites,  the  Shechemites,  the  She- 
miadites,  the  Hepherites. 

The  tribe  of  Ephraim  had  four ;  the  Shu- 
thalites,  the  Bachrites,  the  Tahanites,  the 
Eranites. 

The  tribe  of  Benjamin  had  seven ;  the  Bela- 
ites,  the  Ashbeelites,  the  Ahiramites,  the  Shu- 
phamites,  the  Hupliamites,  the  Ardites,  the 
Naamites. 

The  tribe  of  Dan  had  but  one ;  the  Shu- 
hamites. 

The  tribe  of  Aslier  had  five  ;  the  Jimnites, 
4;he  Jesuites,  the  Beriites,  the  Heberites  the 
Malchielites. 

The  tribe  of  Naphtali  had  four  ;  the  Jah- 
zeelites,  the  Gunites,  the  Jezerites,  the  Shil- 
lemites. 

Hitherto  we  have  spoken  only  of  the  He- 
brews by  birth,  who  descended  from  Abraham, 
and  belonged  to  one  of  the  tribes ;  whence 
it  was  that  they  were  better  esteemed  among 
the  Jews  than  those  who  had  been  born  Gen- 
tiles, and  had  embraced  Judaism.  For  thus  we 
find  St.  Paul  urging  it,  as  a  matter  of  merit 
among  the  Jews,  that  he  was  born  a  Jew.  "  I 
was,"  says  he,  "  circumcised  the  eighth  day,  of 
the  stock  of  Israel,  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  a 
Hebrew  of  the  Hebrews  :  as  touching  the  law, 
a  Pharisee,"  Phil,  iii,  5.      The  second  sort  of 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  261 

the  Hebrews  we  mentioned  were  such  as  were 
Gentiles  by  birth,  but  had  embraced  the  Jewish 
religion. 

None  were  excluded  from  receiving  Judaism 
but  eunuchs.  All  strangers  were  received  into 
it  whenever  they  thought  fit  to  submit  to  its 
laws,  or  at  least  to  the  principal  of  them  ;  for 
these  proselytes  (that  is  to  say,  strangers, 
TlpoanlvToi)  were  of  two  sorts.  Some  were 
called  proselytes  of  habitation,*  others  pro- 
selytes of  justice.  The  former  'had  only 
their  dwelling  or  habitation  among  the  Jews, 
and  did  not  engage  themselves  to  an  entire  ob- 
servance of  the  law.  But  they  were  neverthe- 
less obliged  to  keep  the  Sabbath,  and  what  the 
Talmudists  call  the  precepts  of  Noah,  that  is, 
what  God  commanded  Noah  to  observe,  namely, 
not  to  worship  idols,  and  to  abstain  from  blood  ; 
together  with  some  other  commandments  which 
he  gave  him,  and  of  which  we  shall  speak  more 
particularly  in  another  place  For  the  Jews 
were  far  from  suffering  the  strangers,  who 
dwelt  among  them,  to  live  without  laws.  All 
which  Maimonides  explains  in  his  treatise  of  a 
proselyte.  (Chap,  ii.)  "  What,"  says  he, 
"  is  a  proselyte  of  habitation  ?  He  is  one  who 
engages  to  renounce  idolatry,  and  observe  the 
commandments  which  were  given  to  the  chil- 
dren of  Noah  ;  but  neither  is  circumcised  nor 
baptized.     He  is  called  a  proselyte  of  habitation, 

*  Or,  "  proselytes  of  the  gate,"  because  permitted 
to  live  within  'their  gates.  (Prid.  Con.  part  ii, 
lib.  v.) 


262  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

because  we  are  permitted  to  give  such  a  one  a 
habitation  among  the  children  of  Israel,  and  he 
is  received  as  a  religious  Gentile."  He  adds, 
"  Whoever  engages  to  keep  the  commandments 
of  Noah,  and  is  exact  in  his  observance  of  them, 
has  a  right  to  the  rewards  of  a  future  state." 
And  the  Jews  were  forbidden  to  suffer  any  Gen- 
tile to  live  among  them  who  did  not  submit  to 
the  observance  of  these  precepts  ;  as  we  learn 
from  the  same  author.  "  We  are  obliged," 
says  he,  "  to  kill  all  the  Gentles  who  re- 
fuse to  keep  the  commandments  of  Noah,  if 
they  are  in  our  power.  It  is  only  to  us,  who 
are  the  inheritance  of  Jacob,  and  to  those  of 
any  other  nation  who  will  become  proselytes, 
that  Moses  has  given  the  law.  For  it  is  said 
there  shall  be  no  difference  between  the  pro- 
selytes and  you.  And,  therefore,  as  to  the  law, 
let  him  embrace  it  that  will ;  we  force  nobody 
to  it :  but  as  for  the  commandments  of  Noah, 
Moses  our  master,  who  was  taught  by  God 
himself,  has  commanded  us  to  force  all  those 
who  shall  come  into  the  world  to  observe  them, 
and  to  kill  all  those  who  shall  refuse  to  keep 
them.  He  who  receives  them  is  called  a  pro. 
selyte  of  habitation,  and  must  engage  himself 
to  do  so  in  the  presence  of  three  learned 
persons." 

The  second  sort  of  converted  Hebrews  were 
called  proselytes  of  justice.  They  were  so  called 
because  they  embraced  the  whole  law  of  Moses, 
and  engaged  themselves  to  live  holily  and  justly. 
And  they  therefore  had  the  rank  and  privileges 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  263 

of  natural  Jews.  And  it  is  of  them  that  we  avc 
to  understand  those  words  of  our  blessed  Sa- 
viour in  the  gospel,  "Ye  compass  sea  and  land 
to  make  one  proselyte,"  Matt,  xxiii,  15. 

In  order  to  become  a  proselyte  of  justice, 
there  were  three  ceremonies  to  be  performed  ; 
the  first  of  which  was  circumcision.  The  blood 
that  was  spilt  in  the  performance  of  this,  was 
called  the  blood  of  the  covenant,  and  these  new 
converts  were  thought  to  be  the  children  of  it. 
And  as  to  the  necessity  of  it,  the  commandment 
of  God  to  Abraham  is  very  express  :  "  The  un- 
circumcised  man  child,  whose  flesh  of  his  fore- 
skin is  not  circumcised,  that  soul  shall  be  cut 
oft*  from  his  people,"  Gen.  xvii,  14.  Circum- 
cision was,  as  it  were,  the  seal  which  sealed  the 
covenant  which  the  proselyte  entered  into  with 
God,  and  the  solemn  profession  he  made  of  ob- 
serving the  law  of  Moses  ;  which  made  St.  Paul 
say,  Gal.  v,  3,  "I  testify  to  every  man  that  is 
circumcised,*  that  he  is  a  debtor  to  do  the  whole 
law."  And  Maimonides  (Ibid.  chap,  i,)  also 
teaches  the  same  thing.  "  When  a  Gentile," 
says  he,  "  has  a  mind  to  enter  into  the  cove- 
nant, to  shelter  himself  under  the  wings  of  the 
majesty  of  God,  and  to  submit  to  the  law,  he 
must  be  circumcised." 

The  second  ceremony  was  washing,  or  bap- 
tism ;  which  must  have  been  performed  in  the 
presence  of  at  least  three  Jews  of  distinction. 
At  the  time  of  the  performance  of  it,  the  pro- 

*  Or,  as  the  French  has  it,  "  Every  man  that  causes 
himself  to  be  circumcised.' 


264  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

selyte  declared  his  abhorrence  of  his  past  life, 
and  that  it  was  neither  ambition  nor  avarice, 
but  a  sincere  love  for  the  law  of  Moses,  which 
prevailed  on  him  to  be  baptized  ;  and  he  was 
then  likewise  instructed  in  the  most  essential 
part  of  the  law.  He  promised  at  the  same  time 
to  lead  a  godly  life,  to  worship  the  true  God, 
and  to  keep  his  commandments.  And  hence 
the  Christian  Church  has  borrowed  those  cere- 
monies which  she  makes  use  of  in  receiving 
proselytes,  whether  Jews  or  Gentiles ;  for  it  is 
manifest  that  the  institution  of  baptism  by  Jesus 
Christ,  and  the  discipline  of  the  primitive  church 
in  the  administration  of  it,  have  a  relation  to 
this  ceremony  among  the  Jews. 

The  third  ceremony  to  be  performed  was  that 
of  offering  sacrifice.  All  these,  except  circum- 
cision, were  performed  by  the  women  as  well 
as  the  men,  who  became  proselytes.  And  as 
concerning  those  who  had  gone  through  all 
these  ceremonies,  it  was  a  common  opinion 
among  the  Jews  that  they  ought  to  be  looked 
on  as  new-born  infants.  Maimonides  says  it 
in  express  terms  :  "  A  Gentile,"  says  he,  "who 
is  become  a  proselyte,  and  a  slave  who  is  set 
at  liberty,  are  both  as  it  were  new-born  babes ; 
which  is  the  reason  why  those  who  before  were 
their  parents,  are  now  no  longer  so."  Whence 
it  is  evident  that  nothing  could  be  more  just 
than  Jesus  Christ's  reproaching  Nicodemus 
with  his  being  a  master  in  Israel,  and  yet  being 
at  the  same  time  ignorant  how  a  man  could  be 
born  a  second  time.     John  iii,  10. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  265 

But  to  be  more  particular  ;  I  cannot  forbear 
relating  here  at  large  all  that  Maimonides  says 
of  the  manner  of  their  receiving  proselytes. 
It  will,  I  doubt  not,  be  some  pleasure  to  the  reader 
to  trace  out  in  it  the  origin  of  Christian  bap- 
tism, and  of  the  ancient  ceremonies  which  the 
church  observed  in  it.  For  they  are  all  bor- 
rowed from  the  Jews  ;  Jesus  Christ  and  his 
apostles  not  having  thought  fit  to  abolish  them, 
or  to  substitute  new  ones  in  their  room. 

"  How,"  says  he,  "  ought  a  proselyte  now  to 
be  received?  When  any  one  offers  himself,  if 
upon  a  strict  inquiry  it  appears  that  the  mo- 
tives to  his  conversion  are  pure,  he  shall  be 
asked  this  question  :  What  have  you  seen  in 
us  which  inclines  you  to  become  a  proselyte  ? 
Don't  you  know  that  the  Israelites  live  now  in 
sorrow  and  reproach,  that  they  are  exiles,  are 
dispersed  abroad,  and  are  laden  every  day  with 
fresh  miseries?  If  he  answers,  I  know  all  this, 
and  yet  think  myself  unworthy  of  being  received 
among  thenvhe  must  be  admitted.  And  then 
he  shall  be  taught  the  principal  articles  of  reli- 
gion, the  unity  of  God,  and  the  prohibition  of 
idolatry,  in  which  he  must  be  thoroughly  in- 
structed. And  among  the  commandments  of 
God  that  are  taught  him,  both  some  of  the  most 
and  some  of  the  least  importance  shall  be  men- 
tioned, but  briefly.  To  which  shall  be  added 
the  punishments  annexed  to  the  breach  of  these 
precepts.  It  shall  be  said  to  him,  Are  you  sen. 
sible  that  before  you  embrace  religion  you  may 
eat  fat,  and  not  observe  the  Sabbath  ?  And  that 


266  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

if  after  you  are  become  a  proselyte  you  eat  fat, 
you  will  be  excommunicated,  and  if  you  break 
the  Sabbath,  stoned  1  But  nevertheless  these 
punishments  are  not  to  be  mentioned  to  him 
but  with  a  great  deal  of  prudence,  lest  the  ter. 
rible  idea  they  give  him  of  religion  should  turn 
him  from  the  right  way.  Men  must  first  be 
won  over  by  gentle  methods  ;  they  must,  as  the 
Scripture  expresses  it,  be  '  drawn  with  the 
cords  of  a  man,  with  bands  of  love,'  Hos.  xi,  4. 
"And  as  he  must  be  instructed  in  the  doctrine 
of  punishments,  so  likewise  in  that  of  rewards. 
It  shall  be  declared  to  him,  that  the  observance 
of  the  law  will  gain  him  an  immortal  life  in 
the  other  world,  and  that  none  are  truly  wise 
and  just  in  this,  but  they  who  know  the  law  and 
keep  it.  For  it  shall  be  added,  that  a  future 
life  is  reserved  only  for  the  righteous,  which 
are  the  Israelites  ;  and  that  if  they  are  unhappy 
in  this  world,  this  very  thing  shows  that  they 
will  be  eternally  happy  in  the  next.  It  is  not 
necessary  that  they  should  enjoy  #ie  same  hap- 
piness  upon  earth  that  other  people  do  ;  their 
corrupt  inclinations  might  lead  them  either  into 
pride  or  error,  and  they  might  by  that  means 
lose  the  reward  of  the  world  to  come.  Jeshu- 
run,  as  saith  the  Seripture,  '  waxed  fat,  and 
kicked,'  Deut.  xxxii,  15.  So  that  God  does 
not  punish  the  Israelites  with  design  to  destroy 
them.  No,  they  shall  be  preserved  ;  and  it  is 
the  Gentiles  which  shall  be  destroyed.  It  is 
proper  to  enlarge  upon  this  subject,  that  his  love 
and  zeal  may  be  doubled  thereby. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  267 

"  If  he  alters  his  resolution,  and  no  longer 
desires  to  be  a  proselyte,  he  shall  be  left  at  his 
liberty.  If  he  perseveres,  circumcision  must 
not  be  deferred.  And  if  he  has  been  already 
circumcised,  the  blood  of  the  covenant  must  be 
drawn  afresh  from  the  wound.  And  then  time 
shall  be  given  him  for  his  cure,  after  which  he 
must  be  baptized. 

"  Three  chosen  men  shall  stand  before  him 
when  he  is  in  the  water,  and  shall  again  pro- 
pose to  him  some  of  the  commandments  of  the 
law.  If  it  be  a  woman,  women  shall  put  her 
into  the  water,  the  doctors  shall  instruct  her 
while  she  is  in  it,  and  then  they  shall  go  out, 
and  turn  away  their  eyes  from  her  while  she 
comes  out." 


CHAPTER  II. 
Names  and  Divisions  of  the  Holy  Land. 
As  to  names,  the  country  of  the  Hebrews 
has  had  several.  It  was  first  called  the  land  of 
Canaan,  from  Canaan,  the  son  of  Ham,  whose 
posterity  possessed  it.  It  was  afterward  called 
Palestine,  from  the  people  which  the  Hebrews 
call  Philistines,  and  the  Greeks  and  Romans 
(corruptly)  Palestines,  who  inhabit  the  sea- 
coasts,  and  were  first  known  to  them.  And  it 
likewise  had  the  name  of  the  land  of  promise, 
from  the  promise  God  gave  Abraham  of  giving 
it  to  him ;  that  of  the  land  of  Israel,  from  the 
Israelites  having  made  themselves  masters  of 
it ;  that   of  Judea,  from   the   tribe  of  Judah, 


268  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

which  was  the  most  considerable  of  the  twelve, 
and  the  only  one  that  remained  after  the  dis- 
persion ;  and  lastly,  the  happiness  it  had  of 
being  sanctified  by  the  presence,  actions,  mira- 
cles, and  death  of  Jesus  Christ,  has  given  it  the 
name  of  the  Holy  Land,  which  it  retains  to  this 
day. 

As  it  has  happened  to  other  countries,  with 
respect  to  the  inhabitants,  and  their  cities,  so 
likewise  to  this.  It  has  often  changed  its  in- 
habitants and  masters  ;  several  of  its  cities  have 
been  ruined,  and  several  of  them  new  built  ; 
and  it  has  been  divided  in  several  different  man- 
ners, in  the  various  revolutions  it  has  under- 
gone. For  it  was  differently  divided,  1.  By  its 
ancient  inhabitants  j  2.  By  Joshua  ;  3.  By  the 
Romans  ;  4.  In  the  time  of  Christ ;  and  5.  By 
Herod. 

But  it  is  not  so  as  to  its  rivers  and  moun- 
tains ;  they  are  neither  of  them  subject  to 
change.  The  Jordan  is  almost  the  only  river 
in  the  Holy  Land  ;  the  others  are  rather  brooks 
or  rivulets.  This  river  divides  Judea  ;  for  it 
has  its  rise  among  the  mountains  of  Libanus, 
and  after  having  run  through  the  sea  of  Gali- 
lee, loses  itself  in  the  Dead  Sea,  which  is  the 
other  extremity  of  the  land  of  Judah,  toward 
the  south.  It  took  its  name  from  the  city  of 
Dan,  in  whose  neighbourhood  it  rises  ;  for  Jor- 
dan, or  Yarden,  is  the  same  thing  as  if  it  was 
said,  the  river  of  Dan*     The  sea  of  Galilee, 

*  pTO  Ha  Yarden,  "  the  river  of  Dan,"  or 
"  judgment." 


MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  269 

which  Jordan  runs  through,  is  but  a  lake  ;  but 
the  Hebrews  give  the  name  of  sea  to  any  great 
collection  of  waters.  The  same  may  be  observed 
of  the  Dead  Sea.  It  is  a  great  lake,  which  the 
Greeks  call  Asphaltitis,  on  account  of  the  bitu 
men  it  abounds  with  ;  and  the  Jews  call  it  the 
Dead  Sea,  because  fish  cannot  live  in  it.  It 
was  in  this  place,  which  is  now  covered  by  the 
lake,  that  the  cities  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah 
stood.  After  Jordan  are  reckoned  Jarmach  in 
the  country  of  the  Gergesenes,  which  rises 
among  the  mountains  of  Gilead  ;  and  Kirmion, 
near  Damascus,  otherwise  called  Amanach,  or 
Abana  ;  to  which  are  added  Pharphar,  which 
runs  down  from  Mount  Hermon  ;  KLshon,  which 
was  in  the  tribes  of  Issachar  and  Zabulun  ; 
Ar?K)n,  which  comes  from  the  mountain  of  the 
same  name,  and  runs  into  the  Dead  Sea  ;  and 
Jabok,  which  falls  into  Jordan. 

This  country  has  several  mountains ;  the 
most  famous  of  which  are,  Libanus  and  Antili. 
banns,  to  the  north  ;  the  mountains  of  Gilead, 
those  of  the  Moabites,  Hermon  and  Arnon,  to 
the  east ;  the  mountains  of  the  Desert,  to  the 
south  ;  and  Carmel,  the  mountains  of  Ephraim, 
and  the  mountains  of  the  Philistines,  to  the 
west.  And  there  are  likewise  some  in  the  mid- 
dle of  Judea,  as  Tabor,  Gerizim,  Ebal,  Sion, 
Moriah,  Hebron,  and  what  the  gospel  calls  the 
mountains  of  Judea.  But  to  return  to  the  divi- 
sions before  mentioned. 

1.  When  Abraham  went  into  the  land  of 
Canaan,  it  was  inhabited  by  eleven  sorts  of 


270  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

people,  who,  as  Moses  tells  us,  Gen.  x,  took 
their  names  from  the  eleven  sons  of  Canaan. 
They  were  these  : — 

The  Sidonians,  descended  from  Sidon  ;  they 
possessed  the  cities  of  Sidon,  Tyre,  Jokneam, 
and  Aeon,  since  called  Ptolemais. 

The  Jebusites,  from  Jebus  their  parent,  since 
called  the  Philistines ;  their  cities  were  Lach- 
ish,  Gath,  Ekron,  Ascalon,  Azotus,  Gerar,  and 
Debir. 

The  Amorites,  descended  from  Amor  ;  who 
had  the  cities  of  Nabah,  Heshbon,  Bozrah,  and 
Ramoth-Gilead. 

The  Girgashites,  from  Girgas  ;  they  had  the 
cities  of  Damascus,  Maachathi,  Geshur,  Zobah, 
Teman,  Ashteroth,  and  Edrei. 

The  Hivltes,  from  Heveh  ;  their  cities  are 
Jerusalem,  Jericho,  Ai,  Bethel,  Gilead,  Libnah, 
Makkeda,  and  Bezer. 

The  Arkites,  descended  from  Arak  ;  who  had 
the  cities  of  Esebon,  Midian,  and  Petra. 

The  Sinites,  who  descended  from  Sin,  and 
were  masters  of  the  cities  of  Admah,  Sodom, 
Gomorrah,  Zeboim,  and  Zoar. 

The  Arvadites,  from  Arad  ;  who  possessed 
the  cities  of  Arad,  Jarmuth,  Hebron,  Adullam, 
and  Eglon. 

The  Zemarites,  from  Zemar  ;  in  their  terri- 
tories were  built  Samariah,  Tappuah,  Tirzah, 
and  Tanai. 

The  Hamathites,  from  Hamath  ;  who  had  the 
cities  of  Shimron,  and  Kedesh,  and  Hazor,  and 
Hamath.     To  which  likewise  are  added  the 


MAKERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  271 

Perizzites,  to  whom  belonged  the  cities  of 
Amalek  and  Bozrah. 

2.  When  the  Israelites  made  themselves 
masters  of  the  land  of  Canaan,  since  from  them 
called  the  land  of  Israel,  the  most  powerful  peo- 
ple who  inhabited  it  were  the  Amorites,  the 
Perizzites,  the  Hivites,  the  Canaanites,  the 
Hittites,  the  Jebusites,  and  the  Girgashites. 
It  was  from  them  that  Joshua  gained  it  by 
conquest,  and  he  divided  it  into  twelve  parts, 
which  the  twelve  tribes  drew  by  lot.  The 
tribe  of  Levi  indeed  possessed  no  lands  :  God 
assigned  the  Levites  the  tenths  and  first  fruits 
of  the  estates  of  their  brethren  :  though  never- 
theless they  had  some  cities  which  were  dis- 
persed among  the  other  tribes,  and  were  there- 
fore  called  Levitical  cities  ;  and  some  of  them 
were  cities  of  refuge  for  those  who  should  have 
killed  any  one  unawares.  But  though  the  tribe 
of  Levi  did  not  partake  of  the  division  of  the 
land,  and  this  division  therefore  was  only  among 
eleven  of  the  sons  of  Jacob,  yet  was  the  land 
of  Israel  divided  into  twelve  portions.  There 
were,  I  say,  twelve  tribes,  notwithstanding,  who 
divided  the  land  of  Canaan  among  them,  inas- 
much as  the  children  of  the  two  sons  of  Joseph, 
Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  made  two  different 
tribes.  Those  of  Reuben,  Gad,  and  a  part  of 
that  of  Manasseh,  were  placed  beyond  Jordan, 
toward  Arabia  and  Syria  ;  the  rest  settled  on 
this  side  of  it. 

The  most  considerable  change  which  took 
place  in  this  country  was  that  which  happened 


272  MANIVERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

when  the  ten  tribes  were  driven  from  it,  and 
carried  into  captivity  by  the  Assyrians.  The 
Cutheans,  who  were  sent  to  possess  their  coun- 
try, dwelt  chiefly  in  the  tribe  of  Ephraim  and 
the  half  tribe  of  Manasseh.  The  tribe  of  Judah 
continued  in  captivity  at  Babylon  seventy 
years ;  and  the  Greeks  afterward  made  them- 
selves masters  of  the  empire  of  the  east,  and 
some  of  them,  who  were  kings  of  Syria,  re- 
united the  greatest  part  of  the  country  which 
the  tribes  of  Israel  possessed  to  their  crown  ; 
and  by  this  means  (the  tribe  of  Judah  remain- 
ing alone  after  the  others  were  dispersed)  the 
names  which  the  different  parts  of  the  land  of 
promise  had  received  upon  the  division  Joshua 
made  of  it  among  the  twelve  tribes,  were 
changed  long  before  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ. 

3.  The  Romans  divided  this  country  into 
Palestine  and  Phoenicia.  The  former  contained 
the  ancient  country  of  the  Philistines,  the  latter 
all  the  maritime  cities  as  far  as  Libanus,  and 
made  a  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Syria. 

4.  In  the  time  of  Jesus  Christ  the  land  of 
Israel  was  divided  into  Judea,  Samaria,  Galilee, 
and  Idumea ;  and  there  were  then  several  Ga- 
lilees,  as  we  shall  see  presently. 

Judea  contained  a  part  of  the  ancient  tribe 
of  Judah,  and  those  of  Benjamin,  Dan,  and 
Simeon.  Its  breadth  was  from  Jordan  to  the 
city  of  Joppa. 

Idumea,  which  was  south  of  Judea,  between 
Arabia  and  Egypt,  had  been  conquered  by 
Hyrcanus;  and  this   high  priest  commanded 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  273 

the  inhabitants  either  to  be  circumcised,  or  to 
leave  their  country  ;  upon  which  they  chose  to 
be  circumcised,  and  from  that  time  their  coun- 
try became  a  part  of  Judea  ;  so  that  it  is  not 
to  be  wondered  at  if  St.  Mark  reckons  the  Idu- 
means  among  those  who  came  to  Jesus  Christ. 
Mark  iii,  8.  The  name  of  Idumea  was  at  first 
given  only  to  the  country  which  was  possessed 
by  Esau,  who  in  Hebrew  is  called  Edom,  that 
is,  red.  His  first  descendants  were  at  first 
called  Edomites,  and  afterward  Idumeans.  We 
know  of  no  king  of  Idumea  but  Esau,  whom 
the  Greeks  call  epv&poe,  that  is  to  say,  red;  and 
from  hence  the  Red  Sea,  or  Erithrea,  has  its 
name ;  and  not  from  any  particular  colour  either 
in  its  water  or  its  sand. 

Samaria  was  at  first  only  the  name  of  a  city, 
but  it  became  afterward  that  of  a  province.  It 
contained  the  tribe  of  Ephraim,  and  the  half 
tribe  of  Manasseh,  which  was  on  this  side  Jor- 
dan ;  so  that  it  was  to  the  north  of  Judea,  and 
between  the  great  sea,  Galilee,  and  Jordan  ; 
and  there  was  therefore  no  going  from  Galilee 
to  Jerusalem  without  passing  through  this  pro- 
vince. John  iv,  4.  Sichem,  called  by  the 
Hebrews  Sichar,  was  its  capital,  and  was  situ- 
ated  between  the  mountains  Gerizim  and  Ebal. 
The  name  of  Sichar  was  a  term  of  reproach 
which  the  Jews  gave  this  city  in  allusion  to 
that  passage  of  Isaiah,  "  Wo  to  the  drunkards 
of  Ephraim,"  Isa.  xxviii,  1  :  for  the  Hebrew 
word  the  prophet  here  makes  use  of  comes  from 
sachar,  which  signifies  to  get  drunk,  and  St. 

18 


274  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

John  therefore  calls  this  city  by  the  name  the 
Jews  used  to  do.     Near  it  was  Jacob's  well. 

Josephus  distinguishes  between  two  Galilees, 
the  upper  and  the  lower :  they  both  join  to 
Syria  and  Phoenicia,  to  the  west ;  Samaria 
and  Scythopolis,  as  far  as  Jordan,  to  the  south  ; 
the  towns  of  Hippus  and  Gadara,  and  the  ter- 
ritory of  Gaulonitis,  to  the  east ;  and  Tyre  and 
its  territory,  to  the  north  ;  so  that  Galilee  con- 
tained  the  tribes  of  Issachar,  Zabulun,  Ashur, 
and  Naphtali,  except  Paneadis,  which  took  its 
name  from  the  city  of  Paneas,  formerly  Dan, 
and  since  called  Cesarea  Philippi,  situated  at 
the  foot  of  Mount  Libanus  :  all  this  latter  ter- 
ritory is  out  of  Galilee.  This  province  had 
the  happiness  to  receive  the  light  of  the  gospel 
the  first  of  any  :  it  then  contained  a  great  num- 
ber of  very  populous  cities.  Josephus,  from 
whom  we  take  this  account,  reckons  up  to  the 
number  of  two  hundred  and  four  cities  or  vil- 
lages ;  the  least  of  which  had  above  fifteen 
thousand  inhabitants. 

The  country  that  the  tribes  of  Reuben  and 
Gad  possessed  beyond  Jordan  was  called  Perea, 
which  signifies  a  distant  province,  because  it 
was  beyond  Jordan.  Its  length,  according  to 
Josephus,  (Wars  of  the  Jews,  b.  iii,  c.  3,)  was 
from  the  city  of  Macheron  to  that  of  Pella ; 
and  its  breadth  from  Philadelphia,  a  country 
of  the  ancient  Moabites,  to  Jordan.  Pella  was 
to  the  north  of  it ;  Jordan  to  the  west ;  the 
country  of  the  Moabites  to  the  south ;  and 
Arabia  to   the  east.     The  country  which   ex- 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  275 

tends  toward  Libanus  northward,  and  toward 
the  mountains  of  Hermon  eastward  near  Da- 
mascus, was  the  portion  of  the  half  tribe  of 
Manasseh ;  but  afterward  it  comprehended 
Gaulonitis,  so  called  from  the  city  of  Gaulon, 
(which  Josephus  makes  to  have  been  two  cities, 
the  upper  and  the  lower ;  Wars  of  the  Jews, 
b.  i,  c.  1  ;)  Batanea,  which  was  formerly  the 
kingdom  of  Bashan  ;  and  Trachonitis,  which 
took  its  name  from  the  craggy  mountains  with 
which  it  abounded.  Strabo  says  it  touched 
upon  Ccelosyria.  To  the  north  lay  Auranitis, 
which  took  its  name  from  the  city  of  Auran, 
which  was  situated  between  Cesarea  and  Da- 
mascus. And  near  it  was  Iturea,  which  joined 
to  Ccelosyria,  beyond  Mount  Libanus.  Pliny 
places  Iturea  in  Ccelosyria  itself;  and  Adrico- 
mius  says  Iturea  begins  at  Jordan,  and  extends 
all  along  Libanus,  as  far  as  the  mountains  of 
Tyre  and  Sidon  toward  the  west.  So  that  they 
must  be  mistaken  who  place  Iturea  in  Perea. 
They  found  their  opinion,  indeed,  upon  what 
the  Scripture  tells  us  of  the  Itureans  having 
assisted  the  tribes  of  Reuben  and  Gad  ;  but  it 
does  not  follow  from  thence  that  Iturea  was  in 
the  middle  of  those  tribes,  or  even  in  their 
neighbourhood.  Perea  was  subject  to  Herod 
the  tetrarch;  and  the  gospel  tells  us  that  Iturea 
was  a  part  of  Philip's  tetrarchy.    Luke  iii,  1. 

But,  beside  these,  there  was  yet  another  can- 
ton in  Judea,  which  was  called  Decapolis,  be- 
cause it  contained  ten  cities,  whose  inhabitants 
lived  after  the  Grecian  manner,  and  Josephus 


276  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

therefore  calls  them  Grecian  cities.  Pliny 
reckons  among  the  cities  of  Decapolis,  Damas- 
cus, Opoton,  Philadelphia,  Raphana,  Scytho- 
polis,  Gadara,  and  Hippus  ;  and  Josephus  tells 
us  (Antiq.  b.  xvii,  c.  11,  s.  4,  and  Wars  of  the 
Jews,  b.  ii,  c.  6,  s.  3,)  that  Cesar  separated 
Gaza,  Gadara,  and  Hippus,  from  the  kingdom 
of  Judea,  and  joined  them  to  Syria.  But  those 
geographers  who  place  Capernaum,  Chorazin, 
Bethsaida,  and  Cesurea  Philippi  in  Decapolis, 
are  certainly  mistaken  ;  though  it  be  true  that 
some  of  those  ten  cities  were  around  about  the 
sea  of  Tiberias  and  Jordan  ;  and  that  Josephus 
therefore  says  that  Galilee  was  encompassed 
with  strangers.  Agreeably  to  which,  he  says 
in  another  place  that  the  Gentiles  killed  a  great 
number  of  the  Jews  in  the  cities  of  Scythopolis, 
Gadara,  and  Hippus  ;  and  it  is  probably  cities 
of  this  kind  that  the  gospel  means  by  the  name 
of  "  Galilee  of  the  Gentries." 

Gadara,  the  metropolis  of  Perea,  according 
to  Strabo,  gave  the  name  ofGadarenes  to  its 
territory,  in  like  manner  as  that  of  Gergesenes 
came  from  the  city  of  Gergesa.  These  two 
little  countries  were  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
each  other ;  and  it  ought  not  therefore  to  be 
wondered  at  that  in  the  relation  of  the  same 
miracle,  St.  Mark  and  St.  Luke,  Mark  v,  2  ; 
Luke  viii,  26,  should  say  that  Jesus  Christ  did 
it  in  the  country  of  the  Gadarenes,  and  St. 
Matthew,  Matt,  viii,  28,  in  that  of  the  Gerge- 
senes :  nor  is  it  any  more  strange  that  these 
people    should    keep   swine,    since  they  were 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  277 

Gentiles.  And  we  find  likewise  in  the  same 
relation  of  the  evangelists  a  proof  that  Gadara 
and  Gergesa  were  parts  of  Decapolis.  For  St. 
Mark  says,  Mark  v,  20,  that  the  demoniac, 
who  was  delivered  from  the  unclean  spirits 
which  Jesus  Christ  permitted  to  go  into  the 
herd  of  swine,  published  the  miracles  which 
Jesus  Christ  had  wrought  in  his  favour,  in  De- 
capolis ;  whereas  St.  Matthew  and  St.  Luke — 
Matt,  viii,  33  ;  Luke  viii,  39 — only  say  that  he 
published  them  "  throughout  the  whole  city," 
that  is,  either  in  Gadara  or  Gergesa. 

These  two  cities  were  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  a  lake  which  was  called  Genesareth,  from 
the  city  of  Chinnereth.  This  lake  the  book  of 
Joshua,  chap,  xii,  3,  places  in  the  tribe  of  Naph- 
tali ;  and  in  Numbers,  chap,  xxxiv,  11,  it  is 
called  the  sea  of  Chinnereth;  for  both  this 
passage  and  that  in  Joshua  are  to  be  under- 
stood of  this  lake.  Afterward  the  name  of 
Genesareth  was  given  both  to  the  lake  and  the 
country  around  about  it  ;  which,  as  Josephus 
testifies,  (Wars  of  the  Jews,  b.  iii,  c.  10,  s.  8,) 
was  watered  by  a  spring  called  Capernaum  ; 
whence  without  doubt  the  city  so  called  had  its 
name.  The  sea  of  Genesareth,  as  the  Hebrews 
speak,  was  likewise  called  the  sea  of  Tiberias, 
from  the  city  of  that  name,which  stood  near  it. 
Some  have  thought  that  the  city  of  Tiberias 
was  the  ancient  Chinnereth  ;  but  it  is  a  mis. 
take.  Josephus  expressly  says  that  Herod 
built  it  in  a  place  where  there  was  no  city  be- 
fore. "  Herod  the  tetrarch,"  says  he,  "  to  testify 


278  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

his  gratitude  to  Tiberius,  who  honoured  him 
with  his  friendship,  chose  out  an  agreeable  place 
upon  the  borders  of  the  lake  called  Genesareth, 
and  there  he  built  a  city  which  he  called  Tibe- 
rius."    (Antiq.  b.  xviii,  c.  2,  s.  3.) 

CoRlosyria  is  without  the  borders  of  Judea,  but 
joins  to  them  :  one  part  of  it  is  called  Abilene, 
from  the  city  Abila,  its  capital ;  which  I  ob- 
serve, because  this  little  province  was  a  part  of 
Herod  the  Great's  kingdom ;  and  St.  Luke, 
chap,  iii,  1,  speaking  of  the  princes  who  go- 
verned at  the  time  that  St.  John  began  to  preach, 
mentions  it.  This  king,  under  whom  Jesus 
Christ  was  born,  possessed  Idumea,  Judea,  Sa- 
maria, Perea,  Galilee,  Peneadis,  Gaulonitis,  Ba- 
tanea,  Trachonitis,  Auranitis,  and  Abilene. 

5.  When  he  died  he  divided  all  his  dominions 
among  his  three  sons,  Archelaus,  Herod  Anti- 
pas,  and  Philip.  He  gave  Archelaus  the  king- 
dom which  contained  Idumea,  Judea,  and  Sa- 
maria. He  gave  Herod  Galilee  and  Perea, 
under  the  name  of  a  tetrarchy  ;  which  was  a 
dignity  that  held  the  fourth  place  in  the  Roman 
empire,  after  emperors,  proconsuls,  and  kings. 
And  Philip  had  Gaulonites,  Trachonites,  Bata- 
nea,  and  Paneadis,  with  the  same  title.  This 
is  Josephus'  account  of  it ;  but  St.  Luke  makes 
Iturea  a  part  of  Philip's  tetrarchy.  Perhaps 
Josephus  confounds  Iturea  and  Auranitis  under 
the  general  name  of  Paneadis.  Herod  like- 
wise gave  Salome,  his  sister,  the  cities  of 
Jamnia,  Azotus,  and  Phazealis. 

As  soon  as  Herod  was  dead  Archelaus  was 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  279 

proclaimed  king  ;  and  the  fear  that  the  new 
king  was  of  the  same  opinion,  with  relation  to 
the  child  Jesus,  as  his  father  had  been,  made 
Joseph  and  Mary  retire  to  Nazareth,  upon  their 
return  from  Egvpt.     Matt,  ii,  22,  23. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Of  the  different  ways  of  measuring  time  among  the 
Hebrews  :  their  hours,  days,  weeks,  months, 
years,  and  jubilee. 

God,  who  formed  the  republic  of  the  He- 
brews, appointed  certain  fixed  and  regular 
times  for  the  performance  of  things,  without 
which  all  would  necessarily  have  run  into  dis- 
order and  confusion.  And  this  appointment 
was  the  more  necessary,  in  that  he  prescribed 
the.  performance  of  certain  sacrifices  and  festi- 
vals ;  both  which  he  fixed  to  certain  days.  But 
it  would  be  very  difficult  to  form  a  clear  notion 
of  them,  if  we  knew  not  the  manner  in  which 
the  Hebrews  regulated  and  measured  time.  For 
though  all  people  make  use  of  almost  the  same 
terms,  yet  these  terms  have  very  different  sig- 
nifications ;  so  that  our  hours,  days,  months, 
and  years  are  very  different  from  those  of  the 
Hebrews ;  and  we  shall,  therefore,  in  this 
chapter,  speak  first,  of  days ;  secondly,  of 
weeks  ;  thirdly,  of  months  ;  fourthly,  of  years. 

First,  of  days.  Time  is  the  measure  of 
things  ;  which  duration  we  judge  of,  by  the  re- 
lation it  bears  to  the  course  of  the  planets ;  that 


280  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

is,  we  say  a  thing  has  a  longer  or  shorter  dura- 
tion, in  proportion  as  certain  planets  have  made 
more  or  fewer  revolutions  during  its  subsistence. 
The  time  in  which  the  earth  revolves  around  its 
own  axis  from  west  to  east,  is  termed  a  day. 
But  some  begin  the  day  at  noon,  others  at  mid- 
night ;  some  at  sunrising,  and  others  at  sun- 
set. The  Hebrews  follow  this  last  method  ; 
that  is  to  say,  with  them  the  day  begins  at  sun- 
set, and  ends  the  next  day  at  the  same  time.* 
Whence  it  is  that  we  read  in  the  gospels,  that 
the  sick  were  not  brought  out  to  Jesus  Christ 
on  the  Sabbath  days  till  after  sunset,  Matt, 
viii,  16  ;  Mark  i,  32  ;  which  was  because  the 
Sabbath  was  then  ended,  and  the  Jews,  who 
were  scrupulously  exact  in  observing  it  were 
no  longer  afraid  of  any  violation  of  it. 

And  it  was  likewise  customary  with  the  He- 
brews to  express  a  whole  day  by  the  terms,  the 
evening  and  the  morning,  Gen.  i,  5,  8,  13,  19, 
23,  31 ;  or  by  these,  the  night  and  the  day : 
which  the  Greeks  express  by  the  nuchthemeron, 
and  which  as  well  signifies  any  particular  part 
of  the  day  or  night,  as  the  whole  of  it.  And 
this  is  the  reason  why  a  thing  that  has  lasted 
two  nights  and  one  whole  day,  and  a  part  only 
of  the  preceding  and  following  days,  is  said  by 
the  Hebrews  to  have  lasted  three  days  and 
three  nights.     Matt,  xii,  40. 

*  Exod.  xii.  18;  Lev.  xxiii,  32.  From  which  last 
text  it  is  evident  that  the  Sabbath  began  at  the  even- 
ing or  sunset  of  the  day  we  term  Friday,  and 
ended  at  the  same  time  on  the  following  day, 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  281 

It  is  with  time  as  with  places,  with  respect  to 
its  division  :   it  is  purely  arbitrary.      Formerly 
the  Hebrews  and  Greeks  divided  the  day  only 
according  to  the  three  sensible  differences  of  the 
sun,  when  it  rises,  when  it  is  at  the  highest  point 
of  elevation  above  the    horizon,  and  when  it 
sets  ;  that  is,  they  divided  the   day  only  into 
morning,  noon,  and  night.     And  these  are  the 
only  parts  of  a  day  which  we  find  mentioned  in 
the  Old  Testament  ;  the   day   not   being  yet 
divided   into  twenty-four  hours.     Since  that, 
the  Jews  and  Romans  divided  the  day,  that  is, 
the  space  between  the  rising  and  setting  of  the 
sun,  intoybwr   parts,  consisting  each  of  three 
hours.     But   these   hours  were  different    from 
ours  in  this,  that  ours  are  always  equal,  being 
always  the  four-and-twentieth  part  of  the  day  ; 
whereas  with  them  the  hour  was  a  twelfth  part 
of  the  time  which  the  sun  continues  above  the 
horizon.     And  as  this  time  is  longer  in  sum- 
mer than  in  winter,  their  summer  hours  must, 
therefore,   be    longer  than  their  winter  ones. 
The  first  hour  began  at  sunrising,  noon   was 
the  sixth,  and  the  twelfth  ended  at  sunset.  The 
third  hour  divided  the  space  between  sunrising 
and  noon ;  the  ninth  divided  that  which  was 
between  noon  and  sunset.     And  it  is  with  rela- 
tion   to   this  division    of  the  day   that   Jesus 
Christ  says   in  the    gospel,  "  Are    there    not 
twelve  hours  in  the  day  ?"  John  xi,  9. 

The  Hebrews  likewise  distinguished  between 
two  evenings.  The  first  began  at  noon,  when 
the  sun  begins  to  decline,  and  reached  to  its 


282  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

setting:  the  second  began  at  that  setting  ;  and 
they  call  the  space  of  time  between  these  two, 
that  is,  from  noon  to  sunset,*  been  haarbaeem, 
that  is,  between  the  two  evenings.^ 

The  night  was  likewise  divided  by  the  He- 
brews into  four  parts.  These  were  called 
twitches,  and  lasted  each  three  hours.  The 
first  is  called  by  Jeremiah  the  beginning  of  the 
watches,  Lam.  ii,  19;  the  second  is  called  in  the 
book  of  Judges  the  middle  watch,  Judg.  vii, 
19  ;  because  it  lasted  till  the  middle  of  the 
night.  The  beginning  of  the  third  watch  was 
at  midnight,  and  it  lasted  till  three  in  the 
morning  ;  and  the  fourth,  Matt,  xiv,  25,  was 
called  the  morning  watch,  Exod.  xiv,  24.  The 
first  of  these  four  parts  of  the  night  began  at 
sunset,  and  lasted  till  nine  at  night,  according 
to  our  way  of  reckoning;  the  second  lasted  till 
midnight  ;  the  third  till  three  in  the  morning  ; 
and  the  fourth  ended  at  sunrising.  The 
Scripture  sometimes  gives  them  other  names ; 
it  calls  the  first  the  evening,  the  second  mid- 
night,  the  third  cockcroiving,  and  the  fourth  the 
morning.     Mark  xiii,  35. 

Secondly.  The  Hebrews,  like  us,  make  their 
weeks  to  consist  of  seven  days,  six  of  which 
are  appointed  for  labour ;  but  they  were  not 

*  Or  rather  "  the  ninth  hour,"  which  is  the  middle 
point  between  them,  is  what  they  called  "  between  the 
evenings."    (Lamy,  de  Tabern.  1.  vii,  c.  7.  sec.  1.) 

t  Exod.  xii,  6.  ttWSn  *pa  "  been  haarbaeem," 
improperly  translated  "  in  the  evening"  in  our  En- 
glish Bibles. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  283 

suffered  to  do  any  work  on  the  seventh  day, 
which  was,  therefore,  called  the  Sabbath,  that 
is,  a  day  of  rest. 

The  observation  of  the  Sabbath  began  with 
the  world.  God,  after  he  had  employed  six 
days  in  making  the  universe  out  of  nothing, 
rested  the  seventh  day,  and,  therefore,  appointed 
it  to  be  a  day  of  rest.  Gen.  ii,  2,  3.  But  this 
term  Sabbath  is  likewise  sometimes  taken  for 
the  whole  week.  And  from  hence  it  is,  that 
the  Pharisee,  when  he  would  express  his  fast- 
ing twice  in  a  week,  says  that  he  fasted  twice 
every  Sabbath.* 

The  days  of  the  week  have  no  other  names 
but  those  of  their  order,  the  first,  second,  third, 
&c,  from  the  Sabbath  ;  and,  therefore,  as  the 
Hebrews  express  one  and  the  first  by  the  same 
word,  una  sabbati  is  with  them  the  first  day  of 
the  week.  But,  nevertheless  the  Hellenist 
Jews  have  a  particular  name  for  the  sixth  day, 
that  is,  for  the  virgil  of  the  Sabbath,  and  call 
it  paraskeue,  that  is,  the  preparation.^ 

But,  beside  this  week  of  days,  the  Hebrews 
had  another  week,  whtch  consisted  of  seven 
years  ;  the  last  of  which  was  a  year  of  rest, 
and  was  called  the  sabbatical  year.  The  earth 
rested  on  this  5'ear,  and  no  one  was  suffered  to 
cultivate  it.  And  at  the  end  of  seven  weeks  of 
years,  that  is,  after  forty-nine  years,  the  forty- 
ninth  year  was  called  the  year  of  jubilee.  Some 
think  it  was  the  fiftieth  year,  but  they  are  mis- 

*  Luke  xviii,  12.     ~Nrj^evcj  dig  rov  oa.66a.Tov. 
t  Mark  xv,  42,     IlapaaKev?j,  0  sg-i  Trpoaa66aTov. 


284  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

taken.  It  is  true  that,  according  to  the  com- 
mon manner  of  speaking  in  the  Scripture,  the 
year  of  jubilee  is  the  fiftieth  year  ;  as  the  Sab- 
bath day  is  called  the  eighth  day,  reckoning 
from  one  Sabbath  to  another,  inclusively  of 
both.  And  in  the  same  manner  the  Olympiads ', 
which  contained  the  space  of  four  years,  are 
called  quinquennium,  the  space  of  jive  years ; 
because  by  one  Olympiad  was  ordinarily  under- 
stood the  space  contained  between  the  two 
Olympiads,  with  which  it  began  and  ended, 
reckoning  the  beginning  of  the  latter  as  in- 
cluded in  the  former. 

Thirdly.  It  is  certain  that  at  first  the  months 
were  regulated  by  the  moon  ;  because  the  in- 
tervals of  time  are  most  easily  distinguished  by 
the  course  of  this  planet.  When  it  is  before 
the  sun,  it  is  as  it  were  swallowed  up  in  its 
rays  ;  but  as  soon  as  it  begins  to  separate  from 
it,  its  crescent  begins  to  show  itself,  and  in- 
creases insensibly,  till  at  last  its  whole  disk  be- 
comes luminous,  and  then  it  is  at  full ;  after 
which  its  light  diminishes,  and  returns  through 
the  same  phases  to  its  first  crescent,  and  then 
\t  re-enters  the  rays  of  the  sun. 

And  as  the  moon  regulates  the  months,  so  does 
the  sun  the  year  ;  and  the  division  which  we 
make  of  the  year  into  twelve  months  has  no 
relation  to  the  motion  of  the  moon.  But  it  was 
not  so  with  the  Hebrews  ;  their  months  are 
lunar,  and  their  name  sufficiently  shows  it. 
They  call  them  Yarchin,  which  comes  from 
Yarac,  which  signifies  the  moon.    It  is  disputed 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  285 

whether  the  antediluvian  months  were  not  ra- 
ther regulated  by  the  sun  ;  that  is,  whether 
they  were  not  all  equal,  so  that  each  contained 
the  twelfth  part  of  a  year;  but  learned  men  are 
agreed  that  from  the  time  of  Moses  the  Jewish 
months  have  been  lunar.  They  do  not  reckon 
the  beginning  of  them  from  the  time  that  the 
moon  joins  the  sun,  because  that  planet  then 
disappears  ;  but  they  begin  it  at  her  first  jihasis, 
as  soon  as,  upon  her  separation  from  the  sun, 
she  first  shows  herself  in  the  west,  after  sunset. 
And  for  this  reason  they  call  the  beginning 
of  the  month  the  new  moon  ;  though  the  Latin 
interpreter,  to  accommodate  himself  to  the  Ro- 
man style,  calls  it  the  calends .*  The  moment 
in  which  this  conjunction  between  the  sun  and 
moon  is  made  can  only  be  known  by  an  astro- 
nomical calculation,  because  she  does  not  then 
appear ;  and  because  the  Hebrews  were  little 
skilled  in  this  science,  especially  at  the  first 
forming  of  their  republic.  God  therefore  com- 
mands them  to  begin  their  months  at  the  first 
phasis,  or  first  appearance  of  the  moon,  which 
required  no  learning  to  discover  it.  And  be- 
cause this  first  appearance  of  the  moon  was  of 
importance  in  their  religion,  God  having  com- 
manded that  the  new  moon  should  be  a  festival, 
and  that  they  should  offer  up  a  particular  sa- 
crifice to  him  on  that  day,  Num.  xxviii,  11  ;  it* 
cannot    therefore   be  improper  to    give  some 

*  Num.  x,  10.    Siquando  Habebitis  epulum  et  dies 
festos  et  calendas,  &c.    See  the  Vulgate. 


286  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

account  here  of  the  care  the  Hebrews  took  to 
discover  this  new  moon. 

And,  in  the  first  place,  this  was  an  affair  in 
which  the  great  sanhedrim  was  concerned : 
there  were  always  some  of  that  body  who  ap- 
plied themselves  to  astronomy  ;  and  the  differ- 
ent phases  of  the  moon  were  likewise  painted 
upon  the  hall  in  which  the  sanhedrim  assem- 
bled. And,  in  the  second  place,  it  belonged  to 
them  to  choose  men  of  the  strictest  probity, 
who  were  sent  to  the  tops  of  the  neighbouring 
mountains  at  the  time  of  the  conjunction  ;  and 
who  no  sooner  perceived  the  new  moon,  but  they 
came  with  all  speed,  even  on  the  Sabbath  day 
itself,  to  acquaint  the  sanhedrim  with  it.  It 
was  the  business  of  that  council  to  examine 
whether  the  moon  had  appeared,  and  to  declare 
it  ;*  which  was  done  by  pronouncing  these 
words,  The  feast  of  the  new  moon,  The  feast 
of  the  new  moon  ;  and  all  the  people  were  in- 
formed of  it  by  the  sound  of  trumpets.  To 
which  ceremony  David  alludes  when  he  says, 
"  Blow  the  trumpet  in  the  new  moon,  in  the 
time  appointed,  on  our  solemn  feast  day,"  Psa. 
lxxxi,  3.  The  air  is  so  serene  in  Judea,  that 
it  seldom  happened  that  the  clouds  hid  the 
moon  :  but  when  it  did  so  happen,  the  error  it 
occasioned  was  immediately  rectified,  and  not 
suffered  to  pass  into  the  next  month.  The  de- 
crees of  the  sanhedrim  on  this,  as  well  as  on 
other  occasions,  were  so  revered,  that  the  Jews 
say  they  ought  to  be  obeyed  even  when  they 
are  mistaken. 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  287 

From  what  has  been  said  of  the  course  of 
the  moon,  it  appears  that  there  are  two  sorts 
of  months  ;  the  one  which  is  regulated  by  the 
circle  which  the  moon  describes,  and  takes  up 
twenty-seven  days,  seven  hours,  and  some  mi- 
nutes, which  is  called  the  periodical  month ; 
and  another,  which  is  measured  by  the  space 
between  two  conjunctions  of  the  moon  with  the 
sun,  which  is  called  the  synodical  month,  and 
consists  of  twenty-nine  days,  twelve  hours, 
forty-four  minutes,  and  some  seconds.  This 
last  is  the  most  popular  and  only  in  use  ;  be- 
cause the  phases  of  the  moon  are  most  proper 
to  distinguish  the  beginning,  middle,  and  end 
of  it.  The  hours  which  exceed  nine  and 
twenty  days  make  the  months  alternately  one 
of  nine  and  twenty  days,  and  one  of  thirty.  For- 
merly the  sanhedrim  settled  the  number  of  days 
in  each  month  ;  but  now  the  Jews  follow  the 
common  calculation,  and  their  months  are  one 
of  nine-and-twenty  days,  and  another  of  thirty. 

Fourthly.  Nothing  now  remains  upon  this 
subject,  but  to  speak  of  the  Jewish  year.  Con- 
cerning which,  I  shall  not  enter  into  the  dis- 
pute whether  they  used  the  solar  or  the  lunar 
one,  because  it  is  certain  that  they  were  both 
in  use  among  them.  I  only  observe  that  they 
took  a  very  particular  care  that  the  first  month 
of  their  sacred  year,  that  is,  of  the  year  whereby 
their  festivals  and  religion  were  regulated,  did 
never  expire  before  the  equinox  ;  and  that, 
without  this  precaution,  they  would  have  solem- 
nized the  same  festivals  twice  in  the  same  solar 


288  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

year.  So  that  the  equinox  was  a  fixed  point, 
which  the  Jews  made  use  of  to  regulate  their 
years  by  ;  and  they  did  it  in  this  manner:-— 

The  two  equinoxes  began  each   a  different 
year.     The  new  moon,  which  followed  the  au- 
tumnal equinox,  after  the  fruits  were  gathered 
in,  began  the  civil  year ;  the  common  opinion 
concerning  which  is,  that  the  world  was  created 
in  this  season,  and  this  was  formerly  the  first 
month  in  the  Jewish  year.     But  after  the  Jews 
came  out  of  Egypt,  Moses,  to  preserve  the  me- 
mory of  their  deliverance,  commanded  that  the 
month  in  which  that  deliverance  was  wrought 
(which  was  in  the  lime  when  the  earth   opens 
her  bosom,  and  all  things  begin  to  bud)  should 
have   the   first  rank ;   and   by  this  means  the 
vernal  equinox  began  a  second  year,  which  was 
called  the  sacred,  or  the  ecclesiastical  year.  But 
though  these  years  have  different  beginnings, 
yet  they  both  consist  of  twelve  months,  which 
are,  according  to  their  order,   called   the  first, 
second,  third,  &c.  And  formerly  there  was  none 
of  them  that  had  any  particular  name  but  the 
two  equinoctial  ones,  and  they  were  called,  the 
vernal  one,  Abib,  which  signifies   a  green  ear 
of  corn  :  and  the  autumnal  one,  Ethanim.  But 
about  the  time  of  the  captivity  each  month  had 
a  particular  name.     The  names  were  these  : 
the  first  month,  formerly  called  Abib,  was  called 
Nisan  ;  the  second,  Iyar ;   the  third,   Sivan ; 
the  fourth,   Tamuz  ;  the  fifth,  Ab ;  the  sixth, 
Elul ;  the  seventh,    Tisri ;  the  eighth,  Mar- 
chesvan  ;  the  ninth,  Cisleu  ;  the  tenth,  Tebeth  , 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  289 

the  eleventh,  Shebat;  the  twelfth,  Adar.  Never- 
theless, there  were  some  years  in  which  they 
added  a  thirteenth  month,  which  was  called 
Veadar,  or  the  second  Adar.  Nor  were  the 
planets  only  made  use  of  to  distinguish  time  ; 
it  was  likewise  distinguished  by  the  different 
seasons  which  succeeded  one  another,  as  well 
as  by  them.  After  the  earth  has  closed  up  her 
bosom  in  the  winter,  she  opens  it  in  the  spring, 
and  brings  forth  herbs ;  and  then,  during  the 
summer,  the  sun  warms  it,  thereby  to  ripen  the 
corn  and  fruits,  that  they  may  be  gathered  in 
before  the  return  of  the  winter.  Which  differ- 
ence of  the  seasons  arises  from  the  sun's  near- 
ness to  or  distance  from  our  tropic,  according 
to  which  it  continues  more  or  less  time  above 
the  horizon. 

But,  that  aJl  this  may  be  the  better  under- 
stood, it  is  necessary  that  we  briefly  explain  the 
first  principles  of  the  sphere.  Between  the  poles 
of  the  world  the  astronomers  have  feigned  a 
circle,  which  cuts  the  sphere  into  two  equal 
parts,  and  to  which  they  give  the  name  of  the 
equinoctial.  And  at  a  certain  distance  from 
this  they  have  made  another  line  on  each  side 
of  it,  which  they  call  the  tropics ;  to  which 
they  add  a  fourth,  which  they  draw  from  one 
of  these  tropics  to  the  other,  and  which  cuts  the 
equinoctial  obliquely  in  two  opposite  points  ; 
and  this  they  call  the  zodiac.  And  upon  this 
zodiac  they  have  marked  out  four  principal 
points ;  two  in  the  places  where  it  touches  the 
tropics,  and  the  other  two  in  its  sections  of  the 

19 


290  MANNERS    OF  THE    ISRAELITES. 

equinoctial ;  and  by  this  means  they  explain 
the  length  of  the  year,  the  difference  of  the 
seasons,  and  the  inequality  of  days  and  nights  ; 
for  the  year  is  nothing  else  but  the  space  of 
time  which  the  sun  takes  up  in  running  through 
the  zodiac.  When  it  is  at  the  points  which  cut 
the  equinoctial,  the  days  and  nights  are  equal, 
and  we  then  have  spring  or  autumn.  When 
it  advances  toward  our  pole,  and  comes  to  our 
tropic,  we  then  have  summer  ;  and  when  it  re- 
turns back,  and,  repassing  the  equinoctial,  other- 
wise called  the  line,  comes  to  the  other  tropic, 
we  then  have  winter.  Of  these  four  points,  the 
two  which  touch  the  tropics  are  called  solstices, 
and  those  which  cut  the  equinoctial  are  called 
equinoxes. 

The  ancient  astronomers  thought  that  the 
sun  took  up  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  days 
and  six  hours  :  which  six  hours  they  joined 
together  every  fourth  year,  and,  making  a  day 
of  them,  inserted  it  in  the  month  of  February. 
And  the  first  day  of  the  month  was  then  by  the 
Romans  called  the  calends;  and  they,  reckoning 
backward  into  the  days  of  the  preceding 
month,  called  them  theftrst,  second,  third,  &c, 
of  the  calends.  And  this  additional  day  being 
made  the  sixth  of.  the  calends  of  March,  and 
they  reckoning  on  these  years  two  sixth  days 
of  these  calends,  this  was  the  reason  why  the 
years  in  which  these  additional  days  were  in- 
serted were  called  bissextile.  So  that  every 
four  years  the  month  of  February,  which  ordi- 
narily consisted  of  twenty-eight  days,   had  a 


MAMSERS  OF   THE   ISRAELITES.  291 

day  added  to  it,  and  was  made  to  consist  of 
twenty-nine.  But  the  astronomers  of  latter 
ages,  having  made  more  exact  observations, 
have  found  that  the  year  was  not  so  long  by 
eleven  minutes  :  a  difference  which,  how  in- 
considerable soever  it  may  appear,  did  yet  in- 
troduce a  confusion  in  the  seasons  of  the  year 
in  a  succession  of  several  ages.  So  that  the 
vernal  equinox,  which,  at  the  time  of  the  coun- 
cil of  Nice,  fell  on  the  20th  or  21st  day  of 
March,  was  found  to  fall,  in  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury, on  the  tenth  or  eleventh.  For  the  rea- 
son why  the  equinox  at  any  time  advances  or 
goes  back  a  day  is  the  difference  between  the 
bissextile  and  the  common  year.  And  in  order 
therefore  to  put  a  stop  to  this  disorder,  which 
in  time  would  have  thrown  back  the  month  of 
Ap?'il,  in  which  nature  awakes,  and  begins  to 
dress  herself  in  her  vernal  ornaments,  into  .the 
midst  of  winter,  the  calendar  was  reformed 
about  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century,*  and  by 
retrenching  ten  days,  the  equinoxes  were  brought 
back  to  the  same  points  they  were  at,  at  the 
council  of  Nice.  And  they  have  likewise  re- 
trenched one  bissextile  every  hundred  years, 
(which  nevertheless  continues  to  be  ordinarily 
placed  every  fourth  year  as  before,)  because 
that,  in  the  space  of  four  centuries,  the  eleven 
minutes  every  year  (as  above  mentioned)  are 
so  far  from  making  four  complete   days,   that 

'  *  This  was  done  in  the  year  1512,  during  the  ponti- 
ficate of  Gregory  XII.,  therefore  the  "  Gregorian," 
or  "  New  Style/' 


292  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

they  make  but  little  more  than  three ;  and  by 
this  means  the  points  of  the  equinoxes  are  so 
fixed  for  the  future,  that  they  can  never  vary 
again.  The  reader  will,  I  hope,  pardon  this 
digression,  which  I  make  because  it  may  be 
doubtless  of  some  assistance  to  those  who  have 
not  thoroughly  studied  these  matters. 

Let  us  now  see  by  what  means  the  Jews  re- 
gulated their  year  so  exactly  that  its  first  month 
always  came  in  the  spring.  There  were  two 
reasons  that  engaged  them  to  he  extremely 
exact  in  this  matter:  the  one  of  which  was, 
that  the  law  obliged  them  to  offer  up  to  God  a 
sheaf  of  ripe  barley,  or  at  least  of  such  as  was 
pretty  nearly  ripe,  in  this  first  month  ;  and  the 
Other  was.  that  the  passovcr,  which  fell  on  (he 
fourteenth  day  of  this  month,  could  not  be  cele- 
brated without  offering  up  an  infinite  number 
of  lambs,  which  it  would  have  been  impossible 
to  have  had  in  winter.  And  it  was  therefore 
necessary  that  this  first  month,  in  which  the 
feast  of  the  passover  was  celebrated,  should  not 
be  entirely  passed  before  the  vernal  equinox,  and 
that  it  should  always  fall  in  the  same  season 
of  the  year. 

In  the  meantime,  twelve  lunar  months  make 
but  three  hundred  and  fifty-four  days,  eight 
hours,  forty-nine  minutes,  and  some  seconds. 
And  consequently  this  year  must  be  shorter 
than  the  solar  one  by  eleven  days,  some  hours, 
and  some  minutes.  But  it  has  been  already 
said  that  the  Jews  regulated  their  months  by 
the  phases  of  the  moon,  and  not  by  any  astro- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  293 

nomical  calculations.  And  when  therefore 
their  twelfth  month  was  ended,  and  they  found 
that  their  spring  was  not  yet  come,  the  next 
new  moon  was  not  made  to  helong  to  the  first 
month,  hut  to  a  thirteenth  which  they  inserted, 
and  therefore  called  the  intercalary  month.  And 
this  they  did  so  exactly,  that  the  full  of  the 
moon  of  the  month  Nisan  never  came  before 
the  equinox,  that  is.  before  the  day  when  the 
sun,  entering  the  first  degree  of  Aries,  makes 
the  days  and  nights  equal. 

But,  that  I  may  give  all  the  necessary  light 
that  is  wanting  in  this  affair,  I  shall  observe 
that  the  Jews  have  four  sorts  of  years,  or  rather 
that  each  year  has  four  beginnings.  That  of 
the  civil  year  was  in  the  month  Tisri ;  that  of 
the  sacred  year,  in  the  month  Xisan  ;  that  of 
the  tithe  of  the  cattle,  in  the  month  Elul,  that  is 
to  say,  according  to  the  rabbins,  that  they  be- 
gan from  this  month  to  take  an  account  of  all 
the  cattle  which  were  born,  that  they  might 
offer  the  tithe  of  them  to  God,  Lev.  xxvii,  32  ; 
and,  lastly,  that  of  trees,  which  was  on  the  first 
or  fifteenth  of  the  month  Shebat.  For  the  same 
rabbins  likewise  say  that  the  law  having  com- 
manded  that  the  fruit  of  a  tree  newly  planted 
should  not  be  eaten  of  till  after  three  years, 
Lev.  xix,  23,  because  the  tree  was,  till  that 
time  thought  unclean ;  it  is  from  the  last  men- 
tioned  month  that  they  began  to  reckon  this 
sort  of  year. 

What  I  have  said  concerning  these  four  dis- 
tinctions relates  only  to  the  common  year  of 


294  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  Jews,  which,  as  has  been  said,  consisted  of 
twelve  or  thirteen  lunar  months.  But,  beside 
this  year,  they  had  a  second,  (as  has  also  been 
already  observed,)  which  consisted  of  seven 
years,  and  was  called  sabbatical.  On  this  year 
the  Jews  were  not  permitted  to  cultivate  the 
earth.  They  neither  ploughed,  nor  sowed,  nor 
pruned  their  vines  ;  and  if  the  earth  brought 
forth  any  thing  of  its  own  accord,  these  spon- 
taneous fruits  did  not  belong  to  the  master  of 
the  ground,  but  were  common  to  all,  and  every 
man  might  gather  tkem.  So  that  the  Jews 
were  obliged  during  the  six  years,  and  more 
especially  in  the  last  of  them,  wherein  they 
cultivated  the  earth,  to  lay  up  provisions  enough 
to  last  from  the  end  of  the  sixth  year  to  the 
ninth,  in  which  was  their  first  harvest  after  the 
sabbatical  year.     Lev.  xxv,  1-7. 

And  as  seven  common  years  made  the  sab- 
Ixitical  year,  so  did  seven  sabbatical  years 
make  a  third  sort  of  year  among  them,  which 
was  called  the  year  of  jubilee. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Of  the  Jewish  sacrifices — Their  different  kinds,  and 
their  different  ceremonies  •  and  of  their  offerings, 
gifts,  first  fruits,  and  tenths. 

Sacrificing  is  the  offering  up  to  God  a  liv- 
ing animal,  whose  blood  is  shed  in  adoration  of 
his  majesty,  and  in  order  to  appease  his  wrath. 
All  the  different  religions  in  the  world  agree  in 


MANNERS  OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  29C> 

this  point,  and  have  had  the  same  ideas  of 
sacrifice;  which  uniformity  of  opinion  is  very 
surprising.  From  whence  could  it  be,  that  all 
people  should  thus  universally  agree,  that  the 
blood  of  an  animal  has  these  two  great  proper- 
ties ?  or  how  could  it  come  to  pass,  that  the 
use  of  sacrifice  should  thus  universally  prevail 
among  men  ?  It  is  commonly  said,  indeed,  that 
this  was  a  fond  conceit,  which  owes  its  rise  to 
the  barbarity  of  the  Gentiles  ;  and  some  think 
that,  as  to  the  Jews,  they  borrowed  this  custom 
from  the  Egyptians,  and  that  it  pleased  God  to 
leave  them  to  the  worship  they  had  seen  in 
Egypt,  he  being  content  with  barely  reforming 
it.  But  can  it  be  believed  that  God  would 
borrow  the  manner  of  his  worship  from  a  people 
that  were  superstitious,  and  at  enmity  with 
him  ?  No  :  the  origin  of  sacrifices  is  to  be 
dated  much  higher.  It  is  derived  from  the  pa- 
triarchs,* from  Abel,  from  Noah,  and  from 
Abraham,  who  all  offered  sacrifices,  which  the 
Scripture  testifies  were  acceptable  to  God. 

It  may  be  said  that  all  people  had  this  idea 
of  a  sacrifice  ;  they  all  pretended  to  substitute 
the  soul  of  the  beast,  which  is  the  blood,  in 
room  of  the  criminal  soul  of  the  sinner.  "  The 
law  of  sacrifices,"  say  Eusebius,  (Demonst. 
Evang.  lib.  i,  c.  10,)  "  manifestly  shows  it  ;  for 
it  commands  all  those  who  offer  sacrifices  to  put 

*  Probably  from  Adam  himself,  who  was  clothed 
with  the  skins  of  beasts,  which  were  most  probably 
slain  in  sacrifice.  Gen.  iii,  21.  (De  Tab.  1.  iii,  c.  7, 
sec.  1.) 


296  MANNERS    01'    THE    ISRAELITES. 

their  hands  upon  the  heads  of  the  victims  ;  and 
when  they  lead  the  animal  to  the  priests,  they 
lead  it  by  the  head,  as  it  were  to  substitute  it 
thereby  in  the  room  of  their  own."  And  upon 
this  is  founded  the  law  which  forbids  the  eating 
of  blood  ;  which  God  himself  explains  very 
clearly  in  the  reason  he  gives  for  this  prohibi- 
tion :  "  For,"  says  he,  "  the  life  of  the  flesh  is 
in  the  blood,  and  I  have  given  it  to  you  upon 
the  altar,  to  make  an  atonement  for  the  soul," 
Lev.  xvii,  11.  And  if  then  it  be  true,  that 
God  himself  commanded  the  patriarchs  to  offer 
sacrifices  to  him,  and  if  he  looked  on  the  blood 
that  was  shed  in  them,  as  the  essence  of  the 
sacrifice,  who  can  doubt  but  that  this  was  done 
with  a  view  to  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ, 
which  was  one  day  to  be  shed  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  the  universe  ?  Adam  was  no  sooner 
fallen  into  sin,  but  God  promised  him  one  who 
should  make  an  atonement  for  his  sin  :  and  as 
this  atonement  must  be  made  by  the  blood  of 
Jesus  Christ,  it  pleased  him  that  the  patriarchs, 
and  afterward  his  own  people,  should  give 
types  of  this  great  sacrifice  in  those  of  their 
victims ;  and  from  hence  they  drew  all  their 
virtue.  "  While  men,"  says  the  same  Euse- 
bius,  "  had  no  victim  that  was  more  excellent, 
more  precious,  and  more  worthy  of  God,  ani- 
mals became  the  price  and  ransom  of  their 
souls.  And  their  substituting  these  animals  in 
their  own  room,  bore  indeed  some  affinity  to 
their  suffering  themselves  ;  in  which  sense  it  is 
that  all  these  ancient  worshippers  and  friends 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  297 

of  God  made  use  of  them.  The  Holy  Spirit 
had  taught  them  that  there  should  one  day 
come  a  victim  more  venerable,  more  holy,  and 
more  worthy  of  God.  He  had  likewise  in- 
strucled  them  how  to  point  him  out  to  the 
world  by  types  and  shadows.  And  thus  they 
became  prophets,  and  were  not  ignorant  of  their 
having  been  chosen  out  to  represent  to  mankind 
the  things  which  God  resolved  one  day  to  ac- 
complish." 

So  that  the  first  thing  we  must  suppose,  in 
order  to  explain  the  sacrifices  of  the  ancient 
law,  is,  that  they  were  established  only  that 
they  might  typify  that  sacrifice  which  Jesus 
Christ  was  to  offer  up.  Unless  we  are  pre- 
possessed with  this  truth,  we  can  look  on  the 
tabernacle  and  temple  of  Jerusalem  only  as 
slaughter  houses,  whose  victims,  blood,  and  fat, 
are  more  proper  to  inspire  disgust  than  religion. 
And  God  himself  testifies  the  distaste  he  had 
for  this  immolation  of  animals,  as  soon  as  the 
Jews  came  to  consider  and  practise  it  without  a 
view  to  Jesus  Christ.  "  To  what  purpose," 
says  he  in  Isaiah,  i,  11,  "  is  the  multitude  of 
your  sacrifices  unto  me  ?  I  am  full  of  the 
burnt-offerings  of  rams,  and  the  fat  of  fed 
beasts ;  and  I  delight  not  in  the  blood  of 
bullocks,  or  of  lambs,  or  of  he-goats."  But  how 
then  could  God  reject  the  sacrifices  which  he 
had  himself  commanded  ?  Could  that  which 
pleased  him  at  one  time  displease  him  at  an- 
other? No;  we  cannot  charge  him  with  in- 
constancy.    But  we  see,   by  his    reproaches, 


298  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

that  when  he  commanded  the  sacrifices  of  the 
ancient  law,  he  did  it  not  out  of  any  desire  to 
drink  the  blood  of  goats,  or  eat  the  flesh  of 
bulls,  as  David  speaks,  Psalm  1,  13,  but  only  to 
typify  thereby  the  great  and  precious  sacrifice 
which  his  Son  should  one  day  offer  up  ;  and 
that  as  soon  as  these  sacrifices  ceased  to  be 
animated  by  this  spirit,  (as  those  did  which  the 
carnal  Jewrs  offered,)  they  became  insupport- 
able to  him. 

The  end  of  all  religion  is  sacrifice ;  and 
there  was  never  any  religion  without  it.  As 
to  that  of  animals,  I  shall  speak  of  it  only  so 
far  as  is  necessary  to  render  those  parts  of 
Scripture  where  they  are  mentioned  intelligi- 
ble ;  and  shall,  therefore,  here  confine  myself 
to  the  explaining, — 1.  What  these  ancient 
sacrifices  were  ;  2.  How  many  sorts  of  animals 
were  used  in  them  ;  3.  What  the  manner  of 
offering  them  was ;  4.  What  ceremonies  at- 
tended it ;  5.  Who  was  the  minister ;  6.  The 
place  ;  and  7.  The  time  for  them ;  8.  How 
many  sorts  of  them  there  were  ;  and  9.  What 
was  the  manner  of  partaking  of  them.  All 
which  I  shall  endeavour  to  do  in  a  very  few 
words. 

1.  Sacrificing  is  the  offering  up  an  animal 
to  God,  whereby  his  supreme  majesty  is  ac- 
knowledged, sin  expiated,  and  the  divine  jus 
tice  rendered  propitious.  Man  by  sin  merited 
death  ;  and  in  order,  therefore,  to  satisfy  in 
some  measure  the  justice  of  God,  he  substituted 
animals  in  his  own  room ;  whose  blood  never- 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  299 

theless  would  have  no  efficacy  in  blotting  out 
sin,  were  it  not  that  it  was  a  type  of  the  pre- 
cious blood  which  Jesus  Christ  has  since  poured 
out  for  us  on  the  cross,  and  by  which  he  has 
reconciled  us  to  his  Father.  So  that  by  the 
death  which  the  victims  suffered,  and  by  the  fire 
which  consumed  them,  were  represented  to  sin- 
ners the  two  punishments  which  sin  had  de- 
served, namely,  death  and  eternal  fire ;  and 
sacrifices  were,  at  the  same  time,  both  marks 
of  repentance  and  pledges  of  a  reconciliation. 
2.  There  were ""but  Jive  sorts  of  animals  which 
could  be  offered  up  in  sacrifices,  and  these 
were  oxen,  sheep,  goats,  turtle  'doves,  and 
pigeons ;  which  are  indeed  the  most  innocent, 
the  most  common,  and  the  most  proper  animals 
in  the  world,  for  the  nourishment  of  men. 
And  among  these,  great  care  was  taken  in  the 
choice  of  such  as  were  designed  for  victims  ;  for 
the  least  defect  that  could  be  discovered  in 
them  made  them  unworthy  of  God.  <:  If  the 
beast  be  blind,  or  broken,  or  maimed,  or  having 
a  wen,  or  scurvy,  or  scabbed,  ye  shall  not  offer 
these  unto  the  Lord,  nor  make  an  offering  by 
fire  of  them  upon  the  altar  unto  the  Lord," 
Lev.  xxii,  22.  Maimonides,  in  his  treatise  on 
this  subject,  (De  Ratione  Sacrif.,)  gives  us  a 
long  enumeration  of  all  the  defects  which  pol- 
lute an  animal ;  he  reckons  up  fifty  which  are 
common  to  beasts  and  men,  and  three-and- 
twenty  which  are  peculiar  to  beasts  only,  and 
gives  a  sort  of  anatomical  account  of  the  parts 
in  which  they  are  found.     And  what  then  is 


300  MANNEKS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

this  great  purity  which  God  required  in  the 
choice  of  his  victims,  but  another  proof  that 
they  were  only  designed  to  be  the  figures  of 
Jesus  Christ,  whose  innocence  was  to  be  per- 
feet,  and  the  holiness  of  his  sacrifice  infinite. 

3.  He  who  offered  sacrifice  led  up  the  victim 
before  the  altar  ;  laid  both  his  hands,  according 
to  Maimonides,  (De  Ratione  Sacrif.  c.  iif, 
n.  13,)  but  only  one,  accordiug  to  other  rab- 
bins, upon  the  head  of  it,  Lev.  i,  4,  upon  which 
he  leaned  with  all  his  strength;  and  while 
the  sacrifice  was  offering  up  said  some  particu- 
lar prayers.  If  several  offered  the  same  vic- 
tim, they  put  their  hands  upon  his  head  one 
after  another  ;  which  imposition  of  hands 
upon  the  animal  which  they  were  just  going  to 
sacrifice,  was  to  show  that  they  loaded  him 
with  their  iniquities,  and  that  they  had  deserved 
the  death  which  he  was  going  to  suffer.  And 
hereby  the  victims  of  the  Old  Testament  were 
again  the  types  of  Jesus  Christ,  upon  whom 
were  laid  the  iniquities  of  mankind,  Isa.  liii,  6  ; 
and  they  were  likewise  the  symbols  of  repent- 
ance. For  which  reason,  Maimonides  adds, 
(De  Ratione  Sacrif.  c.  iii,)  concerning  the  sin- 
offering,  that  if  he  who  offered  it  did  not  repent 
and  make  a  public  confession  of  his  sins,  he 
was  not  cleansed  by  it. 

4.  The  manner  of  killing  the  animal  was 
this  :  they  cut  through  the  throat  and  wind- 
pipe at  one  stroke  :  and  they  caught  the  blood 
in  a  basin,  which  they  kept  perpetually  stir- 
ring about,  lest  it   should  coagulate  before  it 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  301 

had  been  sprinkled  upon  the  veil,  or  the  altar, 
or  other  things,  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
sacrifice.      Lev.    iv,    5-7.      What    blood    re- 
mained   after    these    sprinklings    was    poured 
out  at  the  foot  of  the  altar,   either  all  at  once, 
or  at  different  times,  according  to  the  kind  of 
sacrifice  that  was  offered.     There  was  around 
the  altar,  as  has  been  observed,  a  sort  of  trench, 
into  which  the  blood  fell,  and  from  whence  it 
was  conveyed  by  subterraneous  channels,  into 
the  brook  Cedron  ;  and  this  altar,  which  was 
raised  very  high,  was  a  representation   of  the 
cross    to  which  Jesus  Christ  was    fixed,    and 
which    he    washed   with    his    precious   blood. 
After  these  aspersions,  they  skinned  the  victim, 
and  cut  it  in  pieces,  and  carried  up  the  parts 
of  it  to  the  altar  in  great  pomp,  by  a  little  lull 
or  ascent  to  it.     The  priests,  as  they  went  up, 
lifted  up  that  part  of  the  victim  which  they  car- 
ried  toward  the  four  parts  of  the  world.    ,(Sec 
De  Tabern.  1.  vii,  c.  vii,  sec.  1  ;    Maimon.  de 
Ratione  Sacrificii,  c.  vi,  n.   18.)     Either  the 
whole  victim,  or  some  part  of  it  only,  (accord- 
ing  to  the  different  sorts  .of  sacrifices,)  were 
burned  upon  the  altar,  where  the  priests  main- 
tained a  fire  always  burning,  by  taking  care  to 
be  perpetually  laying  fresh  wood  upon  it. 

As  they  went  up  to  the  altar,  they  salted  the 
victim ;  for  the  law  forbid  the  presenting  any 
there  which  was  not  salted  :  and  the  sacrifices 
were  always  attended  with  libations,  which 
were  a  mixture  of  wine  and  flour.  Sometimes 
they  had  cakes  made  of  the  finest  flour  and  oil, 


302  MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  incense,  which  were  baked  in  a  pan,  or 
upon  a  gridiron  ;  and  at  other  times  they  had 
such  as  were  only  made  of  parched  wheat. 
One  half  of  these  cakes  was  burned,  and  the 
other  half  belonged  to  the  priests.  And  all 
these  which  I  have  mentioned,  the  victim,  the 
wine,  the  oil,  and  the  cake,  are  all  expressed  in 
the  single  word  corbanoth,  that  is,  gifts  offered 
to  God ;  and  were  all  either  to  be  consumed, 
killed,  burned,  or  poured  out,  with  the  ceremo- 
nies which  the  law  prescribes,  or  else  to  be  re- 
served  for  sacred  banquets.  Nevertheless,  the 
victims  and  cakes  have  different  names  among 
the  Hebrews  ;  the  former  of  which  they  called 
zebachim,  that  is,  sacrifices ;  and  the  latter 
?nincha,  that  is,  offerings.  And  the  cakes 
which  were  made  of  flour  of  wheat  or 
barley,  and  wine,  were  called  cakes  of  libation. 
All  those  that  were  offered  at  the  altar  must 
first  have  had  some  oil  poured  upon  them; 
and  incense  must  likewise  have  first  been 
put  to  them,  as  is  expressly  commanded  in 
Leviticus,  ii,  1.  Salt  was  likewise  put  in  all 
these  cakes ;  and  this  is  what  Virgil  calls 
salsas  fruges,  for  the  heathen  had  all  these 
ceremonies.  The  cakes  were  burned  upon 
the  altar,  and  the  wine  poured  out  at  the  foot 
of  it ;  but  it  was  not  lawful  to  put  upon  the 
altar  either  honey  or  leaven. 

5.  As  to  the  ministration  of  the  sacrifice, 
any  one  might  kill  the  victims,  and  skin  them, 
and  cut  them  in  pieces  ;  but  the  other  cere- 
monies, as  those  of  catching  the  blood,  and 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  303 

sprinkling  it,  belonged  only  to  the  priests.  And 
in  this  the  law  is  very  express,  that  he  who 
offers  the  sacrifice  *'  shall  kill  it  on  the  side  of 
the  altar,  and  shall  cut  it  in  pieces,  but  that 
the  priests  the  sons  of  Aaron  shall  sprinkle  the 
blood  around  about  the  altar,"  Lev.  i,  11,  12. 
And  it  may  be  remarked  with  Origen,  that 
when  Annas,  Caiaphas,  and  the  other  priests 
condemned  Jesus  Christ  to  death  in  the  sanhe- 
drim, which  was  in  the  temple,  they  then,  in 
that  place  where  the  altar  was,  poured  out  the 
precious  blood  of  that  innocent  victim  to  whom 
all  the  sacrifices  of  the  law  referred. 

6.  Before  the  building  of  the  temple,  the 
sacrifices  were  offered  up  at  the  entrance  into 
the  tabernacle  ;  but  after  that  was  built,  it 
was  not  lawful  to  offer  up  anywhere  but  there, 
as  is  commanded  by  God  himself  in  Deutero- 
nomy, xii,  14  ;  and  this  law  took  away  from  the 
Jews  the  liberty  of  sacrificing  in  any  other 
place.  They  might  slay  their  victims  in  any 
part  of  the  priests'  court  that  they  liked,  but 
not  out  of  it ;  and  they  were  even  obliged  to 
sacrifice  the  paschal  lamb  here.  And  to  this 
prohibition  of  sacrificing  anywhere  but  in  the 
temple  built  at  Jerusalem,  Jesus  Christ  alludes 
when  he  says  in  St.  Luke,  "  that  it  cannot  be 
that  a  prophet  perish  out  of  Jerusalem,"  Luke 
xiii,  33 ;  for  by  this  he  means  not  so  much  as  the 
types  of  the  death  of  the  prophet  could  be  repre- 
sented anywhere  but  in  that  city.  Those  vic- 
tims that  were  most  holy  could  only  be  offered 
up  on  the  north  side  of  the  altar. 


304  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

7.  As  to  the  time  of  ottering  sacrifice,  it 
could  only  be  done  by  day,  and  the  blood  of  the 
animal  was  always  sprinkled  the  same  day  that 
it  was  killed  ;  for  the  blood  became  polluted  as 
soon  as  the  sun  was  down.  But  if  the  sprink- 
ling had  been  made  in  the  day  time,  the  mem- 
hers  and  entrails  of  the  victim  might  be  burned 
all  night  long. 

The  morning  sacrifice  was  offered  as  soon  as 
the  day  began  to  break,  before  the  sun  was 
above  the  horizon  :  and  the  evening  one,  aa 
soon  as  darkness  began  to  overspread  the  earth. 
The  paschal  lamb  was  offered  between  the  two 
evenings,  that  is  to  say,  at  the  time  when  the 
sun  begins  to  decline,  about  the  hour  that  Jesus 
Christ  expired  on  the  cross,  which  answers  to 
our  three  in  the  afternoon. 

8.  We  come  now  to  the  other  sorts  of  sacri- 
fices. One  alone  was  not  sufficient  to  repre- 
sent the  adorable  sacrifice  of  Jesus  Christ, 
whose  effects  are  infinite;  and  therefore  it  was 
necessary  the  old  law  should  have  different  sorts 
of  them.  Some  of  them  were  more,  and  some 
of  them  less  holy  ;  but  they  were  all  either,  1st, 
burnt-offerings,  or  2dly,  sin-offerings,  or  3dly, 
trespass-offerings,  or  4thly,  peace-offerings.  Mai- 
monides  reduces  all  the  sacrifices  of  the  Jews 
to  these  four  sorts ;  which  were  either  offered 
up  by  particular  persons,  or  else  by  the  whole 
people  in  general :  and  we  shall  say  something 
of  each. 

1st.  The  burnt-offering  or  holocaust,  as  the 
word  implies,  is  a  sacrifice  or  victim  which  is 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  305 

entirely  consumed  by  fire,  together  with  the  in- 
testines and  feet,  which  they  took  care  to  wash 
before  it  was  offered.  But  it  was  not  so  with 
other  sacrifices ;  a  part  only  of  them  was  burned, 
and  the  rest  divided  among  the  priests  and  the 
laymen,  who  offered  the  sacrifice.  The  Hebrews 
call  it  Jwla,  which  signifies  to  rise,  because  the 
victim  appeared  to  rise  up  to  heaven  in  a  smoke, 
as  an  odour  of  sweet  smell  before  God.*  It 
sometimes  happened  that  fire  came  down  from 
heaven,  and  miraculously  consumed  the  victim. 
The  reader  may  likewise  find  an  account  of  the 
ceremonies  that  attended  the  offering  up  the 
burnt-offering  in  Leviticus,  i,  5,  6. 

2dly.  The  second  sort  of  sacrifice  is  called  a 
sin-offering.  And  here  we  may  observe  that 
the  words  which  St.  Paul  puts  into  the  mouth 
of  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews, 
x,  8,  "  Sacrifice  and  offering,  and  burnt-offer- 
ing,  and  offerings  for  sin,  thou  wouldst  not," 
are  not  to  be  understood  of  God's  having  refused 
to  accept  of  the  sacrifice  which  Jesus  Christ 
had  offered  him  for  the  sins  of  men,  but  only 
that  God  disliked  all  the  ancient  sacrifices,  the 
oblations,  the  burnt-offerings,  and  the  sin-offer- 
ings, which  were  made  to  him  under  the  law. 
This  sacrifice  was  likewise  sometimes  simply 
called  sin  ;  and  therefore  when  it  is  said  that 
Jesus  Christ  "  was  made  sin  for  us,"f  we  are 

*  i"£>9>  differently  pronounced  "  olah,"  "  holah," 
and  "  gnolah."    Lev,  i,  3. 

t  2  Cor.  v,  21.  vTrep  r/fiov  auapriav  ettohjgsv.  The 
word  afiapria  is  used  by  the  Septuagint  for  a  "  sin- 

20 


306  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

to  understand  thereby  that  he  was  made  a 
sin-offering  for  us.  The  Hebrews  understood 
by  the  word  chatah,  (si?i,)  any  voluntary  crime, 
or  violation  of  the  law,  which  was  committed 
through  inadvertence,  and  which  God  always 
punished,  unless  it  was  expiated.  And  they 
were  persuaded  that  several  diseases  and  pains, 
as  leprosy  and  the  pains  of  child-bearing,  were 
punishments  for  some  sin  ;  and  therefore  the 
sacrifices  that  were  offered  by  lepers,  or  women 
after  they  had  lain  in,  are  reckoned  among  the 
sin-offerings. 

3dly.  In  order  to  understand  what  is  meant 
by  the  third  sort  of  sacrifices,  we  must  first 
know  what  the  Hebrews  meant  by  the  word 
asham,*  which  the  Latin  interpreter  renders 
delictum,  and  signifies  a  trespass,  error,  or  doubt. 
They  offered  this  third  sort  of  sacrifice  when 
they  had  just  reason  to  doubt  whether  they  had 
broken  some  precept  of  the  law  of  God,  or  not. 
When  they  wi  re  in  this  uncertainty  they  were 
obliged  to  offer  sacrifice.  What  the  law  com- 
mands  concerning  it  is  this,  Lev.  v,  17,  "  If  a 
person  sin  through  ignorance,  and  does  any  of 
those  things  which  the  law  forbids,  and  comes 
to  a  knowledge  of  his  fault  after  he  has  com- 
mitted  it,"f  (in  the  Hebrews  it  is,  "  the  man 

offering"  in  ninety-four  places  in  Exod.,  Lev.,  and 
Num.,  which  is  their  translation  of  the  Hebrew 
natsn  "  chatah,"  and  which  in  all  the  above  places 
in  rendered  "  sin-offering"  in  our  English  Bibles. 

*  eieb  "  asham,"  to  be  guilty,  or  liable  to  punish- 
ment. 

t  According  to  the  Vulgate. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  307 

who  shall  sin,  and  commit  some  crimes  against 
any  of  the  commandments  of  the  Lord,  though 
he  be  not  certainly  assured  of  his  sin,  yet  he 
shall  nevertheless  look  upon  himself  as  guilty 
of  it,")  "this  man,"  as  the  Latin  interpreter 
goes  on  in  the  Vulgate,  v,  18,  "shall  present 
unto  the  priest  a  ram  of  his  flock,  in  proportion 
to  the  crime  he  has  committed  ;  and  the  priest 
shall  pray  for  him,  because  he  hath  sinned 
through  ignorance,  and  it  shall  be  forgiven 
him." 

4thly.  The  peace-offering,  or  sacrifice  of  gra- 
titude, (for  the  Hebrew  word  shclamim  signifies 
both,)  was  offered  as  a  thanksgiving,  either  for 
having  recovered  health,  or  for  having  received 
some  signal  mercy  of  God,  or  for  the  happy 
state  of  their  affairs  ;  and  therefore  it  was  called 
eucharistical.* 

But  some  divide  sacrifices  into  those  of  con- 
secration, which  were  offered  when  any  one  was 
admitted  into  the  priesthood  ;  those  of  purifica- 
tion, which  were  offered  for  women  who  had  lain 
in  and  lepers  ;  and  those  of  expiation,  which 
were  offered  for  purifying  the  sanctuary,  or 
temple,  or  people. 

9.  Nothing  now  remains,  but  to  speak  of  the 
manner  of  partaking  of  the  sacrifices  ;  con- 
cerning which  we  must  observe  that  nobody 
partook  of  the  burnt-offerings,  because  they 
were  entirely  consumed  by  fire  :  and  that  in 

*  E^fa^TD  "  shelameem,"  from  ^^j  "  shalam," 
to  make  whole,  complete,  to  make  up  a  difference  be- 
tween parties,  to  produce  peace. 


303  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  other  sacrifices  the  law  declares  what  parts 
of  the  victims  belonged  to  the  priests,  and  what 
parts  belonged  to  those  who  offered  them.  Num. 
xviii,  8,  20.  When  the  sacrifices  were  of  the 
most  holy  sort,  they  were  then  always  obliged 
to  be  eaten  in  the  lioly  place,  that  is,  within 
the  courts  of  the  temple,  and  nobody  was  ad- 
mitted to  this  repast  but  the  Jews,  and  such 
only  of  them  as  had  contracted  no  legal  impu- 
rity. And  as  to  the  other  sacrifices,  which 
were  thought  less  holy,  as  the  paschal  lamb,  it 
was  sufficient  to  eat  them  within  the  walls  of 
Jerusalem, but  nowhere  else.  (Maimonides  de 
Ratione  Sacrificiorum,  cap.  xi,  n.  5.) 

But  beside  these  sacrifices  of  animals,  there 
were  likewise,  as  has  been  said,  some  oblations 
among  the  Jews,  which  were  made  of  bread, 
wine,  oil.  and  incense.  And  of  these  there 
were  three  sorts;  namely,  1st,  such  as  were 
ordinary  or  common  ;  2dly,  such  as  were  free ; 
and,  3dly,  such  as  were  prescribed. 

1st.  The  ordinary  oblations  that  were  made 
among  them  were,  1st,  of  a  certain  perfume 
called  thumiama,  which  was  burned  every  day 
upon  the  altar  of  incense  ;  and,  2dly,  of  the 
show. bread,  which  was  offered  new  every  Sab- 
bath day,  and  the  old  taken  away,  and  eaten 
by  the  priests. 

2dly.  The  free  oblations  were  either  the 
fruits,  1st,  of  promises,  or  2dly,  vows;  but  the 
former  did  not  so  strictly  oblige  as  the  latter. 
And  of  vows  there  were  two  sorts  ;  1st,  the  vow 
of  consecration,  when  they  devoted  any  thing, 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  309 

either  for  a  sacrifice,  or  for  the  use  of  the  tem- 
ple, as  wine,  wood,  salt,  and  the  like ;  and 
2dly,  the  vow  of  engagement,  when  persons  en- 
gaged  themselves  to  do  something  which  was 
not  in  itself  unlawful,  as  not  to  eat  of  some  par- 
ticular meat,  not  to  wear  some  particular  ha- 
bits, not  to  do  such  and  such  innocent  things, 
not  to  drink  wine,  nor  to  cut  their  hair,  not  to 
live  longer  in  any  house,  and  such  like.  When 
they  made  a  vow  they  made  use  of  these  forms  ; 
/  charge  myself  with  a  burnt- offering,  or  I  charge 
myself  with  the  price  of  this  animal,  for  a  burnt - 
offering.  Beside  which,  they  had  likewise  other 
shorter  forms  ;  as,  for  example,  when  thev  de- 
voted all  they  had  they  only  said,  All  I  have 
shall  be  corban,  that  is,  I  make  a  present  of  it 
to  God.  For  the  word  corban  signifies  a  pre- 
sent made  to  God  ;  which  is  the  verv  same 
thing  that  St.  Mark  says  of  it,  Mark  vii,  11, 
u  Corban,  (that  is  to  say,  a  gift,)  by  whatso- 
ever thou  mightest  be  profited  by  me."  The 
Pharisees  taught  that  as  soon  as  a  man  had 
once  said  this  to  his  parents,  as  soon  as  he  had 
pronounced  the  word  corban,  he  thereby  con- 
secrated all  he  had  to  God,  and  could  not  even 
retain  enough  to  support  his  father  and  mother  : 
and  therefore  Jesus  Christ  with  reason  re- 
proaches them  with  having  destroyed  by  their 
tradition  that  commandment  of  the  law  which 
enjoins  children  to  honour  their  fathers  and 
mothers.  The  law  required  an  exact  perform- 
ance of  these  vows,  and  the  things  which  were 
thus  given  to  God  were  reckoned  among  things 


310  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

sacred,  which  nobody  could  alienate  without 
sacrilege. 

3dly.  The  prescribed  oblations  were  either, 
1st,  the  first  fruits,  or  2dly,  the  tenths. 

1st.  All  the  first  fruits  of  both  fruit  and  ani- 
mals were  due  to  God.  Exod.  xxii,  29.  Among 
animals,  the  males  only  belonged  to  God,  and 
they  not  only  had  the  liberty,  but  were  even 
obliged  to  redeem  them,  in  the  case  of  men  and 
unclean  animals,  which  could  not  be  offered  up 
in  sacrifice  to  the  Lord.  And  as  to  fruits,  they 
were  forbidden  to  begin  the  harvest  till  they 
had  offered  up  to  God  the  omer,  that  is,  the 
new  sheaf,  the  day  after  the  great  day  of  un- 
leavened bread  ;  and  were  forbidden  to  bake 
any  bread  made  of  new  corn  till  they  had  pre- 
sented the  new  loaves,  on  the  day  of  pentecost. 
Before  the  offering  up  of  the  first  fruits  all  was 
unclean  ;  after  this  oblation,  all  was  holy.  To 
which  St.  Paul  alludes  in  the  eleventh  chapter 
of  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  ver.  16,  when  he 
says,  "  If  the  first  fruit  be  holy  the  lump  is  also 
holy."  The  law  commands,  says  Philo,  that, 
as  often  as  the  people  make  bread,  they  should 
lay  aside  the  first  fruits  for  the  priests,  and  this 
keeps  up  religion  in  their  hearts  ;  for  when  they 
accustom  themselves  to  lay  aside  something  for 
God,  they  cannot  easily  forget  him.  To  which 
Maimonides  adds,  that  he  that  ate  of  his  fruits 
before  he  had  paid  the  tithe  of  it  was  punished 
with  sudden  death.  And  as  of  fruits  and  ani- 
mals, so  likewise  of  oil  and  wine,  the  first  fruits 
of  them  were  paid  to  God.     Deut.  xvii,  4. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  311 

2dly.  Beside  first  fr uits,  the  Jews  likewise 
paid  the  tenths  of  all  the  fruits  of  the  earth.  St. 
Jerome,  in  his  Commentary  on  the  Fifty -fourth 
Chapter  of  Ezekiel,  divides  the  tenths  into  four 
sorts  ;  1st,  such  as  were  paid  to  the  Levitcs  by 
the  people,  who  were  forbidden  the  eating  any 
fruit  before  this  tenth  was  paid,  upon  pain  of 
death ;  2dly,  such  as  were  paid  by  the  Levites 
to  the  priests  ;  3dly,  such  as  were  reserved  for 
the  banquets  which  were  made  within  the  verge 
of  the  temple,  to  which  the  priests  and  Levites 
were  invited  ;  and,  4thly,  such  as  were  paid 
every  three  years,  for  the  support  of  the  poor. 
If  any  one  had  a  mind  to  redeem  the  tithes  he 
was  to  pay,  he  was  obliged  to  pay  one-fifth 
above  their  real  value  ;  and  the  tithes  that  be- 
longed neither  to  the  priests  nor  Levites  were 
carried  to  the  temple  of  Jerusalem,  from  all 
parts  of  the  world  where  any  Jews  were.  But 
the  distant  provinces  converted  it  into  money, 
which  was  sent  to  Jerusalem,  and  applied  to 
the  sacrifices  and  entertainments^at  which  the 
law  required  gayety  and  joy.  Josephus,  who 
relates  this  custom,  calls  this  money  consecrated. 
And  we  may  say  that  it  was  either  in  order  to 
support  this  pious  custom,  or  else  in  order  to 
substitute  a  more  necessary  one  in  the  room  of 
this,  which  was  now  no  longer  so,  that  the 
apostle  took  care  to  send  alms  to  Jerusalem 
from  all  parts  of  the  world.  The  account  of 
it  is  in  the  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians, 
chap,  xvi,  1-3,  where  St.  Paul  says,  "Now 
concerning  the   collection  for  the  saints,  as  I 


* 

312  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

have  given  order  to  the  churches  of  Galatia, 
even  so  do  ye.  Upon  the  first  day  of  the  week 
let  every  one  of  you  lay  by  him  in  store  as  God 
hath  prospered  him,  that  there  be  no  gatherings 
when  I  come.  And  when  I  come,  whomsoever 
you  shall  approve  by  your  letters,  them  will  I 
send  to  bring  your  liberality  unto  Jerusalem." 


CHAPTER  V. 

Of  the  Ministers  of  the  Temple,  the  Priests,  Leviles, 
Nazarites,  and  Rechabites. 

The  Jews,  in  the  establishment  of  their  re- 
public, had  no  other  king  but  God  himself;  and 
the  place  appointed  for  their  sacrifices  and 
prayers  was  at  the  same  time  both  the  temple 
of  their  God,  and  the  palace  of  their  sovereign. 
And  hence  comes  all  that  pomp  and  magnifi- 
cence in  their  worship,  that  prodigious  num. 
ber  of  ministers,  officers,  and  guards  ;  and  that 
very  exact  order  in  their  functions,  which  was 
first  established  by  Moses,  and  afterward  re- 
newed by  David  with  yet  greater  splendour. 
The  tabernacle  was  the  first  palace  God  had 
among  the  Hebrews,  and  to  that  the  temple 
succeeded  ;  and  the  tribe  of  Levi  was  chosen, 
if  I  may  so  speak,  to  form  his  household.  And 
for  this  reason  it  was  disengaged  from  all  other 
cares,  and  absolutely  devoted  to  the  service  of 
the  altar  :  but  the  honour  of  the  priesthood  was 
reserved  to  the  family  of  Aaron  alone,  and  the 
rest  of  the  tribe  divided  only  the  inferior  offices 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  313 

of  the  temple  among  them,  so  that  all  the 
priests  were  indeed  Levitts,  but  all  the  Lcvites 
were  not  priests  :  nor  were  tue  priests  and  Lc- 
■cites  the  only  sacred  persons  among  the  Jews  ; 
and,  therefore,  in  order  to  comprehend  them  all, 
I  shall  in  this  chapter  speak,  1,  of  the  Lcvites; 
2,  of  the  priests  ;  3,  of  the  officers  of  the  syna- 
gogue ;  4,  of  the  Nazarites ;  5,  of  the  Recha- 
bites;  6,  of  the  patriarchs  ;  and  7,  of  the  pro- 
phets. 

1.  Of  the  Levites.  But  before  I  enter  into 
a  particular  account  of  their  functions  I  shall 
say  something,  1st,  of  the  estates  which  God 
assigned  them  for  their  subsistence,  in  order  to 
free  them  from  the  importunate  cares  of  life, 
which  might  otherwise  have  diverted  them  from 
his  service  ;  2dly,  of  their  consecration  ;  3dly, 
of  their  age ;  and  -then  proceed  to  say  some- 
thing, 4thly,  of  their  functions;  5thly,  of  their 
number  ;  Bthly,  of  such  of  them  as  were  officers 
of  the  temple ;  and,  7thly,  of  the  Nethinim,  or 
their  servants. 

1st.  Then,  in  the  division  of  the  land  of  pro- 
mise, the  Levites  had  not  their  portion  of  it ; 
there  were  only  eight-and-forty  cities,  with 
their  territories  assigned  them  for  the  support 
of  their  cattle,  and  thirteen  of  these  came  to 
share  with  the  priests.  And  these  are  all  the 
possessions  the  Levites  had  ;  but  to  make  them 
amends  for  that  the  other  tribes  paid  them  the 
tithe  of  all  their  estates,  and  they  paid  the 
tenths  of  that  to  the  priests.  And  beside  this, 
the  priests  had  likewise  the  first  fruits  and   a 


314  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

considerable  part  of  the  offerings  that  were  made 
to  God.  All  which  may  be  seen  in  the  book 
of  Numbers,  chap,  xviii. 

2dly.  As  to  the  admittance  of  the  Levites 
into  the  ministry,  birth  alone  did  not  give  it  to 
Ihem  ;  they  were  likewise  obliged  to  receive  a 
sort  of  consecration.  "  Take  the  Levites  from 
among  the  children  of  Israel,"  says  God  to 
Moses,  "and  cleanse  them.  And  thus  shaltthou 
do  unto  them,  to  cleanse  them  ;  sprinkle  water 
of  purifying  upon  them,  and  let  them  shave  all 
their  flesh,  and  let  them  wash  their  clothes,  and 
so  make  themselves  clean.  Then  let  them  take 
a  young  bullock,"  &c.  Num.  viii,  6,  7,  8  ; 
Exod.  xxix,  1-37. 

3dly.  Nor  was  any  Levite  permitted  to  exer- 
cise his  functions,  till  after  he  had  served  a  sort 
of  novitiate  for  five  years,  in  which  he  care- 
fully learned  all  that  related  to  his  ministry. 
Maimonides,  who  gives  an  account  of  this  cus- 
tom, thereby  reconciles  two  places  in  Scripture 
which  appear  contrary  to  one  another :  for  it 
is  said  in  the  book  of  Numbers,  in  one  place, 
Num.  iv,  3,  that  the  Levites  were  not  admitted 
into  the  service  of  the  temple  till  they  were 
thirty  years  old,  and  in  another,  Num.  viii,  24, 
that  they  were  admitted  at  twenty-five.  The 
last  of  which  two  ages  shows  the  time  when 
they  began  their  probation,  and  the  other,  the 
time  when  they  began  to  exercise  their  func- 
tions. So  that  the  Levites  were  at  the  full  age 
of  a  man  when  they  were  admitted  into  their 
office ;  and  at  the  age  of  fifty  they  were  dis- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  315 

charged  from  it.  But  this  rabbin  pretends  that 
this  discharge  was  only  granted  in  the  wilder- 
ness, because  the  tabernacle  often  changed 
place,  and  the  removal  of  it  being  troublesome 
and  laborious,  required  young  men  to  do  it  ; 
and  that  when  the  tabernacle  was  fixed,  age 
was  no  dispensation  for  the  Levites  to  quit  the 
exercise  of  their  offices. 

4thly.  As  to  their  functions ;  Moses  is  very 
particular  in  giving  an  account  of  what  each 
Levite  was  to  carry,  upon  the  removal  of  the 
tabernacle,  Num.  iv;  but  these  offices  subsisting 
no  longer,  after  the  conquest  of  the  land  of  Ca- 
naan, David  established  a  new  order  among  the 
Levites,  whereby  some  were  appointed  to  guard 
the  gates,  1  Chron.  ix,  17-26,  and  xxvi,  some 
to  sing  psalms,  1  Chron.  xxv,  and  some  to 
guard  the  treasures,  1  Chron.  ix,  29  ;  and  he 
likewise  divided  them  into  different  classes,  of 
which  Maimonides  reckons  twenty-four;  and 
each  of  these  was  to  serve  a  whole  week.  The 
head  of  each  of  these  classes  divided  those  who 
were  under  him  into  different  families,  and 
chose  out  every  day  a  certain  number  of  them 
who  were  to  serve  for  that  day  ;  and  the  heads 
of  these  families  assigned  every  one  his  office, 
But  the  Levites  were  not  permitted  to  do  any 
thing  that  was  to  be  done  about  the  altar. 

5thly.  The  number  of  these  Levites,  upon  the 
account  that  was  taken  of  those  who  were 
thirty  years  of  age,  in  Solomon's  time,  was 
thirty-eight  thousand,  1  Chron.  xxiii,  3 ;  and 
thence  we  may  judge  of  the  magnificence  of 


316  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

the  house  of  God,  in  which  there  were  so  many 
officers.  "  Of  which,"  says  the  Scripture, 
"  twenty  and  four  thousand  were  to  set  forward 
the  work  of  the  house  of  the  Lord;  and  six 
thousand  were  officers  and  judges.  Moreover 
four  thousand  were  porters,  and  four  thousand 
praised  the  Lord  with  the  instruments,  and 
David  divided  them  into  courses,"  1  Chron. 
xxiii,  4,  5,  6.  To  which  the  Scripture  adds, 
"  For  by  the  last  words  of  David  the  Levites 
were  numbered  from  twenty  years  old  and  above  : 
because  their  office  was  to  wait  on  the  sons  of 
Aaron,  for  the  service  of  the  house  of  the 
Lord,  in  the  courts,  and  in  the  chambers,  and 
in  the  purifying  of  all  holy  things,  and  the  work 
of  the  service  of  the  house  of  God  ;  both  for 
the  show  bread,  and  for  the  fine  flour  for  meat- 
offering, and  for  the  unleavened  cakes,  and  for 
that  which  is  baked  in  the  pan,  and  for  that 
which  is  fried,  and  for  all  manner  of  measure 
and  size  ;  and  to  stand  every  morning  to  thank 
and  praise  the  Lord,  and  likewise  at  even,  and 
to  offer  all  the  burnt-sacrifices  unto  the  Lord, 
in  the  Sabbaths,  in  the  new  moons,  and  on  the 
set  feasts,"  &c.  1  Chron.  xxiii,  27,  28,  29, 
30,  31.     And, 

6thly.  The  gospel  likewise  tells  us  that  there 
were  officers  in  the  temple  :  and  the  name  St. 
Luke  gives  them  signifies  officers  of  war  ;*  so 
that  we  may  on  this  account  also  look  on  the 
temple  as  a  camp.  Beside  the  general  officer, 
Maimonides  reckons  up  fifty  subalterns,  (in  this 
*  Luke  xxii,  52.    arpar^yot  tov  upov. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  317 

treatise  called  Chelim,  chap,  vii,)  whose  busi- 
ness it  was  to  give  notice  of  the  time  for  the 
solemnities,  the  day  and  hour  of  the  sacrifices, 
and  to  set  the  guard.  Beside  which,  they  had 
likewise  the  charge  of  the  music,  the  instru- 
ments, the  table  in  which  every  one's  office 
was  set  down  according  as  it  had  fallen  to  him 
by  lot,  the  seals,  the  libations,  the  sick,  the 
waters,  the  show  bread,  the  perfumes,  the  oils, 
and  the  sacerdotal  habits.  But  to  give  the 
greater  light  to  all  this,  I  will  repeat  what  Mai- 
monides  has  said  of  it,  which  will  make  the 
reader  more  and  more  admire  the  magnificence 
of  the  house  of  God.  '  Every  officer  (says  he) 
had  under  him  several  persons,  who  executed 
his  orders  in  every  thing  that  related  to  his 
charge.  He,  for  example,  who  was  to  mark 
the  time,  caused  the  hours  to  be  reckoned,  and 
when  that  of  the  sacrifice  was  come,  either  he 
or  some  of  his  men  cried  with  a  loud  voice, 
"  To  the  sacrifice,  ye  priests ;  to  the  tribune,* 
ye  Levites  ;  and  to  your  ranks,  ye  Israelites ;" 
and  then  immediately  every  one  prepared  him- 
self to  set  about  his  duty.  He  who  had  the  care 
of  the  gates  ordered  when  they  should  be  shut, 
and  when  opened  ;  and  the  trumpets  which 
gave  notice  that  the  gates  were  going  to  be 
opened  could  not  sound  till  they  had  his  orders. 
The  officer  of  the  guard  took  his  rounds  at 
night,  and  if  he  found  any  of  the  Levites  on 
guard  asleep,  he  either  caned  him  or  burned  his 
vests.     The  superintendent  of  the  music  every 

*  Music  gallery. 


318  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

day  chose  the  musicians  who  were  to  sing  the 
hymns,  and  gave  orders  to  the  trumpets  to  give 
notice  of  the  sacrifices.  The  masters  of  the 
instruments  delivered  them  out  to  the  Levites, 
and  iippointed  what  instruments  should  every 
day  be  used.  And  he  who  had  the  charge  of 
the  table  made  the  priests  draw  lots,  and  assigned 
every  one  his  office."  (In  Chelim,  chap,  vii.) 
If  the  reader  has  a  mind  to  see  more  of  this,  I 
refer  him  to  the  book  itself;  and  shall  only  add 
here,  that  there  was  another  office  beside  these, 
whose  business  it  was  to  take  care  of  the  priests 
that  fill  sick,  which  often  happened.  For,  as 
they  wore  nothing  but  a  single  tunic,  and  drank 
no  wine,  and  were  obliged  to  go  barefoot  in 
the  temple,  which  was  paved  with  marble,  they 
were  very  subject  to  the  colic.  But  I  must  not 
forget  to  observe  here,  that  David  chose  out 
two  hundred  and  eighty-eight  Levites  to  be 
masters  of  music,  and  teach  the  others  to  sing, 
1  Chron.  xxv,  7  ;  so  that  as  there  were  four- 
and-twenty  courses  of  singers,  each  class  had 
twelve  masters;  and  in  their  performances  they 
mixed  both  voices  and  instruments  together. 
-  7thly  and  lastly.  As  the  priests  had  the  Le- 
vites under  them,  so  had  the  Levites  also  others 
under  them,  whose  business  it  was  to  carry  the 
water  and  wood  that  was  used  in  the  temple. 
Joshua  at  first  made  use  of  the  Gibeonites,  Josh. 
ix,  3-27,  for  this  purpose;  and  afterward  other 
nations  were  employed  in  it ;  and  called  Nethi- 
nim,  (Ezra  viii,  20.  See  De  Tabern.  1.  vii,  c. 
iii,  sec.  4,)  that  is,  persons  who  had  given  them- 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  319 

selves  up,  from  the  Hebrew  Nathan,  which  signi- 
fies to  give. 

From  the  consideration  of  the  Levites  we 
proceed  now, 

II.  To  that  of  the  priests.  In  which  we 
shall  mention,  1st,  their  order  ;  2dly,  their  elec- 
tion; 3dly,  their  manner  of  life;  4thly,  their 
laws;  5thly, their  functions  ;  6thly, their  habits; 
7thly,  the  consecration  of  the  high  priest ;  8thly, 
his  succession  ;  and  9thly,  his  dress. 

1st.  The  order  that  was  observed  among  the 
priests  was  this  :  they  were  divided,  as  we  have 
seen,    into    four-an.l -twenty   classes,    each   of 
which  had  its  head,  who  was  called  the  prince 
of  the  priests.   Every  week  one  of  these  classes 
went  up  to  Jerusalem  to  perform  the  offices  of 
the  priesthood,  and  every  Sabbath  day  they  suc- 
ceeded one  another,  till  they  had  all  taken  their 
turns  :  but  on  the  solemn  feasts  they  all  assem- 
bled there  together.     The  prince  of  each  class 
appointed  an  entire  family  every  day  to  offer 
the  sacrifices,  and  at  the  close  of  the  week  they 
all  joined  together  in  sacrificing.     And  as  each 
class  had  in  it  different  families,  and  each  fa- 
mily consisted   of  a   great   number  of  priests, 
they  drew  lots   for  the   different  offices  which 
they  were  to  perform.     And  it  was   thus   that 
the  lot  fell  on  Zacharias,  the  father  of  John  the 
Baptist,  "  to  burn  incense  when  he  went  into 
the  temple  of  the  Lord,"  Luke  i,  9. 

2dly.  From  considering  their  order,  we  pro- 
ceed  to  consider  the  manner  in  which  the  priests 
were  chosen,  and  the  defects  which  excluded 


320  MANNERS    OF  THE    ISRAELITES. 

them  from  the  priesthood.  Among  the  defects 
of  body  which  rendered  them  unworthy  of  the 
sacerdotal  functions,  Lev.  xxi,  16,  24r  the  Jews 
reckon  up  fifty  which  are  common  to  men  and 
other  animals,  and  ninety  which  are  peculiar  to 
men  alone.  (De  Tabern.  lib.  iii,  c.  ix,  sec.  3.) 
The  priest  whose  birth  was  polluted  with  any 
profaneness  was  clothed  in  black,  and  sent  out 
without  the  verge  of  the  priests'  court ;  but  he 
who  was  chosen  by  the  judges  appointed  for 
that  purpose  was  clothed  in  white,  and  joined 
himself  to  the  other  priests.  And  I  know  not 
whether  St.  John  does  not  allude  to  this  cus- 
tom when  he  says,  "  He  that  overcometh,  the 
same  shall  be  clothed  in  white  raiment,  and  I 
will  not  blot  out  his  name  out  of  the  book  of 
life,"  Rev.  iii,  5.  They  whose  birth  was  pure, 
but  who  had  some  defect  of  body,  lived  in  those 
apartments  of  the  temple  wherein  the  stores  of 
wood  were  kept,  and  were  obliged  to  split  and 
prepare  it  for  keeping  up  the  fire  of  the  altar. 

3dly.  All  the  time  the  priests  were  perform- 
ing their  offices,  both  wine  and  conversation 
with  their  wives  were  forbid  them.  Exod.  xix, 
15;  Lev.  x,  8-11.  And  they  had  no  other 
food  but  the  flesh  of  their  sacrifices  and  the 
show  bread.  They  performed  all  their  offices 
standing,  (Maim,  de  Ratione  adeundi  Tempi. 
c.  v,)  and  barefoot  and  with  their  heads  covered, 
Lev.  x,  6  ;  xxi,  10,  and  feet  washed.  Exod. 
xxx,  19. 

4thly.  The  laws  which  God  laid  upon  the 
priests  are  these  :  "  God  said  unto  Aaro**  "^ 


MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES.  321 

not  drink  wine  nor  strong  drink,  thou  nor  thy 
sons  with  thee,  when  ye  go  into  the  tabernacle 
of  the  congregation,  lest  ye  die,"  Lev.  x,  8,  9. 
"  The  priests  shall  not  be  denied  for  the  dead 
among  his  people,  but  for  his  kin,"  Lev.  xxi,  1,2. 
"  They  shall  not  take  a  wife  that  is  a  whore, 
or  profane;  neither  shall  they  take  a  woman 
put  away  from  her  husband,"  Lev.  xxi,  7.  "The 
daughter  of  any  priest,  if  she  profane  herself 
by  playing  the  whore,  she  profaneth  her  father, 
she  shall  be  burned  with  fire,"  Lev.  xxi,  9. 

5thly.  As  to  the  functions  of  the  priests  : 
their  business  was  to  keep  up  the  fire  upon  the 
altar  of  burnt-offerings,  that  it  might  never 
go  out,  Lev.  vi,  13  ;  (Maim,  de  Ratione  Sa- 
crif.  c.  v,  n.  7  ;)  to  guard  the  sacred  vessels  ; 
to  offer  the  sacrifices  ;  to  wash  the  victims  ;  to 
make  the  aspersions,  whether  of  blood  or 
water,  upon  the  persons  offering  the  victims,  or 
the  book  of  the  law  ;  to  burn  the  incense  upon 
the  altar  ;*  to  dress  the  lamps  ;  to  put  the  new 
show-bread  upon  the  table,  and  to  take  away 
the  old.  And  to  them  only  it  belonged  to  catch 
the  blood  of  the  victims,  and  sprinkle  it  upon 
the  altar.  (De  Tab.  sec.  5 ;  Exod.  xxx,  7  ; 
2  Chron.  xxvi,  16-19.)  Such  as  were  of  the 
sacerdotal  race,  and  were  excluded  from  the 
priesthood  on  account  of  any  defect,  had  the 
care  of  cleaving  the  wood  which  was  burned 
upon  the  altar ;  for  they  were  very  nice  in 
choosing  it,  and  thought  it  unlawful  to  use  any 

*  This  was  the  first  business  of  the  day.  (De  Tab. 
1.  vii,  c.  vi,  sec.  2,  3.) 

21 


322  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

there  which  was  rotten  or  worm-eaten.  All 
the  officers  just  now  mentioned  were  in  com- 
mon to  the  priests  and  high  priests  ;  but  beside 
them  there  was  a  particular  one,  annexed  to 
the  latter  dignity  only,  and  that  was,  that  the 
high  priest  alone  went  into  the  holy  of  holies 
once  a  year  on  the  day  of  expiation,  and  he 
alone  could  offer  up  the  sacrifice  which  was 
then  prescribed,  both  for  his  own  sins  and  those 
of  all  the  people. 

6thly.  As  to  the  names  and  forms  of  the 
sacerdotal  habits,  we  find  them  in  Exodus 
xxviii,  and  Leviticus,  viii.  Those  that  were 
common  to  all  the  priests,  were, — 1st,  linen 
drawers  ;  2dly,  the  linen  robe,  which  was  so 
straight  that  it  had  no  fold  in  it ;  3dly,  the 
girdle  ;  and  4thly,  the  tiara,  which  was  a  sort 
of  bonnet  or  turban,  made  of  several  rolls  of 
linen  cloth  twisted  around  about  the  head. 

7thly.  All  the  priests  had  over  them  a  high 
priest,  whose  habits  were  different  from  theirs, 
and  who  was  consecrated  with  some  particular 
ceremonies.  At  the  time  of  his  consecration, 
they  poured  a  precious  oil  upon  his  forehead, 
Lev.  xxi,  10,  and  this  unction  was  made  in  the 
form  of  the  Greek  letter  X.  Maimonides  tells 
us  that  this  was  not  observed  in  the  second 
temple,  and  that  the  high  priest  was  then  no 
otherwise  consecrated  than  by  the  pontifical 
habits  which  he  wore.  But  when  it  was  ob- 
served, it  was  done  in  such  plenty,  that  we 
are  not  to  wonder  if  the  holy  oil,  which  was 
poured  upon  his  forehead,  ran  down  on  all  sides 


MANITOBA    OF    THK    ISRAELITE?.  323 

upon  the  beard  of  the  high  priest ;  to  which  the 
psalmist  refers  when  speaking  of  a  precious 
perfume,  he  compares  it  with  that  which  was 
used  at  Aaron's  consecration.     Psa.  cxxxiii,  2. 

8thly.  The  high  priesthood,  as  to  its  succes- 
sion, descended  by  inheritance,  and  belonged 
to  the  eldest.  In  its  first  institution,  it  was 
for  life ;  but  from  the  time  that  the  Jews  be- 
came  subject  to  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  the 
duration  of  this  venerable  office  depended  upon 
the  will  of  the  princes  or  governors.  And 
under  the  Asmonean  princes  there  was  an- 
other considerable  alteration  made  in  this 
office.  It  then  went  out  of  the  family  of 
Aaron,  and,  passing  into  that  of  Judas  Macca- 
beus, came  into  a  private  Levitical  family ;  as 
appears  from  the  catalogue  which  Josephus 
has  given  us  of  the  high  priests.  (See  De 
Tabern.  1.  vii,  c.  v,  sec.  7  ;  Joseph.  Ant.  b. 
xx,  c.  x,  and  x,  c.  viii,  s.  6.)  There  could  not 
be  two  high  priests  at  once  ;  but  they  chose  a 
sort  of  vicar  general,  who  supplied  their  places 
in  their  absence,  and  had  the  precedence 
before  all  other  priests.  The  Hebrews  gave 
him  the  name  of  sagan,  and  he  sat  at  the  right 
hand  of  the  high  priest.  And,  therefore,  some 
think  that  Caiaphas  was  high  priest,  and  Annas 
his  sagan,  and  that  this  is  the  reason  why 
Jesus  Christ  was  brought  before  them  both. 
Luke  iii,  2. 

9thly.  As  to  the  habits  peculiar  to  the  high 
priests,  the  first  we  shall  speak  of  is  that  which 
the   Hebrew   text   calls    mehil.      The    Greek 


324  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

interpreters  have  once  rendered  it  by  7rod/}p?ir* 
which  signifies  a  garment  that  reaches  down  to 
the  feet  ;  and  this  is  the  word  which  Josephus 
also  makes  use  of.  But  as  the  same  Greek  in- 
terpreters sometimes  render  it  by  other  words, 
I  am  of  opinion  that  the  mehil  was  not  so  long  ; 
it  might  be  a  shorter  sort  of  garment. 

Upon  the  border  of  this  garment,  whatever 
it  was,  there  were,  instead  of  a  fringe,  seventy, 
two  golden  bells,  and  as  many  pomegranates  ; 
and  if  then  this  garment  had  reached  down  to 
the  ground,  it  would  not  only  have  hidden  the 
tujiic,  or  linen  alb,  which  the  high  priest  wore 
under  it,  and  which  he  had  in  common  with  the 
other  priests,  but  these  pomegranates  and  bells 
would  likewise  have  lost  their  sound.  And, 
therefore,  the  mehil  may  be  said  to  have  been 
called  ]>odcres,  because  it  came  down  almost  to 
the  feet.  The  colour  of  it  was  purple  ;  and 
under  it  was  the  tunic,  or  linen  alb,f  which 
was  common  to  all  the  priests.  This  linen 
was  very  fine,  and  twisted,  so  that  the  tunic 
was  not  woven  close,  but  open ;  and  there 
was  raised  work,  and  hollows,  and  figures  in  it ; 

*  Exod.  xxviii,  1.  5*W3  <rom  i"^2  "  a^h,"  to 
"  go  up,-'  was  probably  so  called  from  being  a  sort  of 
outer,  or  upper  coat. "  Josephus  says,  "  It  reached 
down  to  the  feet,  and  was  not  made  of  two  distinct 
pieces  sewed  together  at  the  shoulders  and  sides,  but 
was  one  entire  lone:  garment,  -woven  throughout." 
( Antiq.  b.  iii,  c  vii,  s.  4.)  Our  Lord's  coat,  mentioned 
John  xix,  23,  appears  to  have  been  precisely  the  same 
with  the  "  mehil."-  The  English  translators  call  it 
"  the  robe." 

t  English,  a  "  broidered  coat." 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  325 

and   its    extremities     reached     down     to    the 
ground. 

2ndly.  And  beside  this,  the  high  priest  wore 
another  sort  of  garment,  which  is  like  a  waist- 
coat without  sleeves,  and  which  is  by  the  He- 
brews called  an  ephod,  and  by  the  Latins  super- 
humerale,  because  it  was  fastened  upon  the 
shoulders.  (And  they  likewise  gave  the  name 
of  ephod  to  another  garment  something  like 
this,  which  laymen  were  permitted  to  wear,  as 
appears  from  David's  being  said  to  have  been 
dressed  in  a  linen  ephod.  2  Sam.  vi,  14.) 
Upon  each  shoulder  he  had  also  a  precious 
stone,  in  which  were  engraven  the  names  of 
the  children  of  Israel ;  in  that  on  the  right 
shoulder  were  the  names  of  the  six  eldest,  and 
in  that  on  the  left,  those  of  the  six  youngest. 
And  he  had  upon  his  breast  a  square  piece  of 
stuff,  Exod.  xxviii,  15-30,  of  the  dimensions  of 
the  Hebrew  zereth,  that  is,  about  half  a  cubit. 
The  Hebrews  call  it  hoschen,  that  is,  the 
breastplate,  because  it  was  worn  upon  the 
breast ;  but  the  Greek  call  it  logion,  and  the 
Latins,  from  them,  rationale,  and  from  these 
latter  comes  the  French  term  rational.  The 
Greek  word  may  be  translated  by  this  Latin 
one  ;  but  I  think  it  would  be  better  rendered 
oraculum,  because  this  was  as  it  were  the 
oracle  by  which  God  gave  his  answers  :  for  the 
high  priest,  when  he  would  consult  God  on  any 
occasion,  put  on  this  ornament  upon  his  breast, 
and  God  answered  him  in  the  manner  we  are 
going  to  relate.     There  were  upon  the  breast- 


326  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

plate  twelve  precious  stones,  upon  which  were 
likewise  engraven  the  names  of  the  twelve 
sons  of  Jacob  ;  and  upon  it  were  also  the  Urim 
and  Thummim.  The  first  of  these  words 
signifies  lights  or  hioicledge,  and  the  other 
truth  or  "perfection ;  and  the  Jews  pretend  that 
they  were  two  sacred  signs,  by  which  God 
made  known  his  will ;  and  when  they  ceased  to 
appear  it  was  no  longer  known  what  they 
were.  All  that  is  certain  concerning  this  opi- 
nion is,  that  the  word  uri?n  signifies  lights  ;  and 
perhaps  it  was  so  called  because  these  precious 
stones  shone  with  an  extraordinary  and  mira- 
culous fire.  So  that  the  Urim  and  Thummim 
were  something  more  than  barely  two  words 
engraven  on  the  breastplate  ;  and,  indeed,  we 
often  find  in  Scripture  that  God  was  consulted 
by  Urim.  Deut.  xxxiii,  8  ;  Num.  xxvii,  21  ; 
1  Sam.  xxviii,  6. 

3dly,  and  lastly.  The  high  priest  wore  like- 
wise a  plate  of  gold  upon  his  forehead,  on  which 
were  engraven  these  two  words,  Kodesch  lay- 
fiovahy  that  is,  Holy  to  the  Lord.  It  was  tied 
with  a  purple  or  blue  riband  to  his  tiara, 
which  was  made  of  linen,  like  those  of  the 
other  priests,  and  was  only  distinguished  from 
them  by  this  plate  and  riband. 

III.  Next  to  the  priests  and  Levites,  the 
officers  of  the  synagogue  ought  to  find  a  place  in 
this  chapter.  They  were  in  some  sort  sacred 
persons,  since  they  had  the  superintendence  of 
those  places  which  were  set  apart  for  prayer 
and  instruction.     They  were  of  several  sorts  ; 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  327 

some  of  them  being  presidents,  whom  the 
Greeks  call  princes  of  the  synagogue,  and  the 
Hebrews  heads  of  the  congregation*  These 
were  men  advanced  in  age,  men  of  letters  and 
understanding,  and  of  known  probity.  The 
Hebrews  call  them  chocamim,  that  is,  sages  or 
wise  men ;  and  their  authority  was  consider- 
able. They  were  judges  of  pecuniary  matters, 
of  thefts,  damages,  and  such  like ;  and  St. 
Paul  doubtless  alludes  to  them  in  the  sixth 
chapter  of  his  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians, 
verse  5,  when  he  reproaches  the  Christians 
with  carrying  their  differences  before  the 
tribunals  of  the  Gentiles,  as  if  they  had  no  per- 
sons among  themselves  who  were  capable  of 
judging  them.  "  Is  it  so,"  says  he  "  that  there 
is  not  a  wise  man  among  you  ?  no,  not  one  that 
shall  be  able  to  judge  between  his  brethren  ?" 
And  these  had  likewise  the  power  of  punishing 
those  whom  they  judged  to  be  rebellious  against 
the  law ;  and  hence  it  is,  that  our  Lord  fore- 
warns his  disciples,  that  "  they  should  be 
scourged  in  the  synagogues,"  Matt,  x,  17. 
Beside  these  presidents  or  princes  of  the  syna- 
gogue, there  was  likewise  in  every  synagogue 
a  sort  oi  minister,  who  read  the  prayers,  directed 
the  reading  of  the  law,  and  preached,  and  was 
called  chazan,  that  is,  an  inspector  of  bishops.f 

*  These  are  in  the  New  Testament  called 
Apxt-ovvayayot  or  "  rulers  of  the  synagogue." 
Mark  v,  35  ;  Luke  viii,  41. 

t  He  that  read  the  prayers  and  gave  the  blessing  in 
the  synagogues  was,  according  to  Dr.  Prideaux, 
a  diflerent  officer  from  the  chazan,  and  was  called 


328  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

And  to  this  minister  were  joined  other  officers, 
who  had  the  care  of  the  poor,  and  collected  the 
alms ;  and  these  were  called  parnasim,  that  is, 
pastors  and  rectors.  As  to  the  reading  of  the 
law  in  the  synagogues,  it  was  always  done  in 
Hebrew,*  and  this  made  it  necessary,  as  soon 
as  that  languajre  ceased  to  be  their  mother 
tongue,  to  establish  an  interpreter,  whom  the 
Jews  call  targumista.  And  by  this  means  the 
doctor  who  explained  the  law  in  Hebrew  came 
to  have  an  interpreter  always  by  him,  in  whose 
<?ai\s  he  softly  whispered  what  he  said,  and  this 
interpreter  repeated  aloud  to  the  people  what 
had  been  thus  whispered  to  him.  This,  Light- 
foot  plainly  proves  in  his  Horce,  Talmudicce ; 
and  this  Jesus  Christ  had  in  view  when  he  said 
to  his  disciples,  "  What  ye  hear  in  the  ear, 
that  proclaim  ye  upon  the  housetops,"  Matt. 
x,  27.  But  the  synagogues  were  not  only 
places  set  apart  for  prayer,  they  were  also 
schools  where  the  young  were  taught.  The 
sages,  for  so  the  masters  were  called,  sat  upon 

"  sheliach  zibbor,"  or  "the  angel  of  the  church;" 
whence  it  is  that  the  bishops  are  called  (Rev.  i) 
"  angels  of  the  churches.'"  The  chazan,  according  to 
him,  was  an  inferior  officer,  whose  business  was  to 
take  care  of  the  books  and  other  utensils;  a  sort  of 
deacon,  such  as  the  parnasim  are  here  said  to  be. 
And  to  such  a  one  as  is  called  a  "  minister,"  our 
Saviour  gave  the  books  when  he  had  done  reading  in 
the  svnagogue.  Luke  iv,  20.  (Connec.  part  i,  b.  vi. 
Under  the  year  444,  p.  307,  306  of  the  fol.  edit.) 

*  Of  the  manner  of  reading  the  Scripture  in  the 
synagogue,  see  Prid.  Con.  part  i,  b.  vi.  Under  the 
year  444.  p.  306  of  the  fol.  edit. 


MANNERS   OF   THE  ISRAELITES.  329 

benches,  and  the  young  men  sat  at  their  feet; 
which  is  the  reason  St.  Paul  says  he  learned 
the  law  at  the  feet  of  Gamaliel.  Acts  xxii,  3. 
We  shall  now  add  an  account  of  such  as 
distinguished  themselves  from  the  people  by  the 
holiness  of  their  lives  ;  and  such  were, 

4thlv.  The  Nazarites,  or,  as  some  called 
them,  Nazareans  ;  which  is  a  Hebrew  word, 
and  signifies  separated.  God  himself  is  the 
author  of  this  kind  of  life.*  From  the  moment 
that  they  devoted  themselves  to  it,  they  ab- 
stained from  all  sorts  of  liquors  that  could  in- 
toxicate, and  never  cut  their  hair  afterward  till 
the  day  that  their  vow  ended.  And  of  these 
there  were  two  sorts  :  1st.  Nazarites  hy  birth, 
as  were  Samson  and  John  the  Baptist  ;  and, 
2dly.  Nazarites  hy  vow  and  engagement.  The 
latter  followed  this  kind  of  life  only  for  a  time, 
after  which  they  cut  off  their  hair  at  the  door 
of  the  tabernacle.  Maimonides  observes  (in 
his  treatise  of  the  Nazareate)  that  there  were 
sometimes  some  zealous  persons  who  volun- 
tarily defrayed  the  expenses  which  were  neces- 
sary for  cutting  off  the  hair  of  one  or  more  Na- 
zarites, after  they  had  offered  the  necessary 
sacrifices,  when  the  time  of  their  vows  was  ex- 
pired. This  may  serve  to  explain  that  pas- 
sage in  the  twenty-first  chapter  of  the  Acts, 
which  some  persons  misunderstand,  in  thinking 
that  St.   Paul    is  there  spoken  of,    as  having 

*  In  the  sixth  chapter  of  Numbers  you  have  an  ac- 
count of  the  qualifications  of  the  Nazarites  and  their 
austerities. 


330  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

made  a  vow  to  become  a  Nazarite.  But  the 
true  sense  of  the  chapter  is  this  :  the  apostles 
advised  St.  Paul  to  bear  the  necessary  expenses 
of  four  Nazarites,  in  order  to  remove  the  opi- 
nion the  people  had  received  of  him,  that  he 
despised  the  law  of  Moses.  Now  they  that 
bore  these  expenses  were  obliged  to  purify 
themselves :  and,  therefore,  St.  Paul  appointed 
a  day,  whereon  he  would  (after  the  time  of  the 
vow  was  past)  pay  the  money  that  was  neces- 
sary to  buy  the  victims  that  were  to  be  offered 
up  on  this  occasion  ;  in  order  thereby  to  un- 
deceive the  Jews  concerning  the  reports  that 
had  been  spread  about  him.* 

5thly.  The  Rechabites,  like  the  Nazarites, 
separated  themselves  from  the  rest  of  the  Jews, 
in  order  to  lead  a  more  holy  life.j*  Jeremiah 
describes  the  life  and  customs  of  the  Rechab- 
ites in  the  thirty-fifth  chapter  of  his  prophecy, 
verses  5-7,  thus :  "  I  set,"  says  he,  "  before 
the  sons  of  the  house  of  the  Rechabites  pots 

*  Not  that  this  is  so  to  be  understood,  with  Petit,  as 
to  imply  that  St.  Paul  had  no  vow  upon  himself;  it  is 
to  me  very  evident,  from  Acts  xviii,  18,  that  he  had« 
vow  upon  himself,  (which  he  made  at  Cenchrea,  and, 
therefore,  shaved  himself  there,  by  way  of  initiation 
into  it,  as  all  those  who  made  vows,  or  were  Naza- 
rites, did,)  as  well  as  assisted  the  others  in  defraying 
the  expenses  of  their  vows.  (See  Lamy  De  Tabern. 
1.  vii,  c.  iii,  sec.  2.) 

f  The  Rechabites'  manner  of  living  was  not  only  a 
matter  of  religion,  but  also  a  civil  ordinance  grounded 
upon  a  national  custom.  They  were  Kenites  or  Mi- 
dianites,  who  used  to  live  in  tents,  as  the  Arabians 
still  do.    Hab.  iii,  7.    (Mede's  Works,  p.  127.) 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  331 

full  of  wine,  and  cups,  and  I  said,  Drink  ye 
wine.  But  they  said,  We  will  drink  no  wine, 
for  Jonadab  the  son  of  Rechab  our  father  com- 
manded  us,  saying,  Ye  shall  drink  no  wine, 
neither  ye  nor  your  sons,  for  ever.  Neither 
phall  ye  build  house,  nor  sow  seed,  nor  plant 
vineyard,  nor  have  any."  This  Rechab,  the 
father  of  Jonadab,  lived  under  Jehu,  king  of 
Israel,  in  the  time  of  the  Prophet  Elisha. 
2  Kings  x,  15.  These  Rechabites  lived  in 
tents,  and  flourished  about  a  hundred  and  four- 
score years.  But  after  the  captivity  they  were 
dispersed,  unless  the  Essenes,  of  whom  we 
have  spoken  before,  (see  page  250,)  succeeded 
them.  It  is  certain  that  they  followed  the 
same  kind  of  life. 

6thly.  Among  the  number  of  sacred  persons 
we  may  likewise  put  the  patriarchs.  Such 
were  Adam,  Noah,  Abraham,  and  the  rest, 
since  they  did  the  offices  of  priests,  offered 
sacrifices,  and  taught  religion  at  home  and 
abroad,  in  proportion  to  the  light  they  received 
from  God. 

7thly.  The  prophets  are  also  of  this  number, 
and  were  raised  up  in  an  extraordinary  man- 
ner  for  the  performance  of  the  most  holy  func- 
tions. They  were  at  first  called  seers,  they 
discovered  future  things,  they  declared  the  will 
of  God,  and  spoke  to  both  kings  and  people  with 
a  surprising  confidence  and  freedom.  Pro- 
phecy was  not  always  annexed  to  the  priest- 
hood :  there  were  prophets  of  all  the  tribes,  and 
sometimes  even  among  the  Gentiles,  Num.  xi : 


332  MANNEBS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  the  office  of  a  prophet  was  not  only  to 
foretell  what  should  afterward  come  to  pass,  it 
was  their  business  likewise  to  instruct  the  peo- 
ple, and  they  interpreted  the  law  of  God  ;  inso- 
much that  the  word  prophet  sometimes  signifies 
an  interpreter  or  teacher.  But  of  both  patri- 
archs and  prophets  we  have  already  spoken. 
(See  pages  25-38,  and  page  178.) 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Jewish  Confession  of  Faith — Doctrine  of  Ori- 
ginal Sin — Opinion  of  the  Messiah's  Kingdom. 

Nothing  more  facilitates  the  understanding 
of  an  author  than  the  knowing  what  ends  he 
proposed  to  himself  in  writing  ;  and  we  can 
never  well  understand  what  these  views  were, 
unless  we  know  what  Mere  the  dispositions, 
sentiments,  and  customs  of  those  for  whom  he 
wrote.  For  an  author  always  adapts  his  dis- 
course to  all  these  things ;  he  either  touches 
upon  them  transiently,  or  he  maintains  them, 
or  he  refutes  them.  And  from  hence  it  is 
easy  to  perceive  how  useful  it  is,  in  order  to 
understand  the  gospel  and  apostolical  epistles, 
to  know  what  were  the  opinions  and  usages  of 
the  Jews,  at  the  time  when  the  authors  of  the 
New  Testament  wrote.  By  Jewish  opinions,  I 
do  not  mean  the  precepts  and  doctrines  of  the 
law,  but  certain  traditions  which  they  pretend 
were  left  them  bv  their  fathers,  which  are  now 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  333 

found  in  the  Talmud,  and  which  the  Jews,  who 
are  strict  adherents  to  their  customs  and  cere- 
monies, do  yet  observe  to  this  day. 

The  confession  of  faith  which  contains 
these  traditions  consists  of  thirteen  articles,  but 
they  are  not  all  equally  ancient.  The  ninth, 
which  declares  that  the  law  of  Moses  cannot  be 
abolished  by  any  other  law,  was  evidently 
drawn  up  against  the  Christian  religion.  This 
confession  of  faith,  as  represented  by  Buxtorf 
in  his  treatise  de  synagoga  Judica,  is  as 
follows  : — 

"  1.  I  firmly  believe,  that  God,  blessed  be 
his  name  for  ever,  is  the  Creator  and  the 
Master  of  all  things  ;  and  that  every  thing 
was,  is,  and  will  be  made  for  him  alone. 

"2.  I  firmly  believe,  that  this  Creator  of  all 
things,  blessed  be  his  name  for  ever,  is  one,  by 
a  unity  peculiar  to  himself,  and  that  he  alone 
has  been,  is,  and  will  be  our  God. 

"3.  I  firmly  believe,  that  this  Creator, 
blessed  be  his  name  for  ever,  is  not  corporeal, 
nor  can  in  any  manner  whatsoever  be  con- 
ceived to  be  corporeal,  and  that  there  is  nothing 
in  the  world  that  is  like  him. 

"  4.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  Creator, 
blessed  be  his  name  for  ever,  is  eternal,  and 
that  he  is  the  beginning  and  end  of  all  things. 

"  5.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  Creator, 
blessed  be  his  holy  name  for  ever,  ought  alone 
to  be  worshipped,  exclusive  of  any  other  being. 

"  6.  I  firmly  believe,  that  all  the  words  of 
the  prophets  are  true. 


334  MANNERS   OF  THE   ISRAELITES. 

"  7.  I  firmly  believe,  that  all  the  prophecies 
of  Moses  our  master  (may  his  soul  rest  in 
peace !)  are  true,  and  that  he  is  superior  to  all 
the  sages  who  went  before  or  came  after 
him. 

"  8.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  law  which  we 
have  now  in  our  hands  was  given  by  inspiration 
to  Moses. 

"  9.  I  firmly  believe,  that  this  law  will  never 
be  changed,  and  that  the  Creator,  blessed  be  his 
holy  name,  will  never  give  another. 

"  10.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  Creator, 
blessed  be  his  holy  name,  knows  all  the  actions 
and  all  the  thoughts  of  men,  as  it  is  said,  '  He 
hath  formed  the  hearts  of  all  men,  and  is  not 
ignorant  of  any  of  their  works,'  Psa.  xxxiii, 
15. 

"  11.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  supreme 
Creator  rewards  those  who  keep  his  law,  and 
punishes  those  who  break  it. 

"  12.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  Messiah 
must  come,  and  though  his  coming  be  delayed, 
I  will  always  expect  it,  till  it  does  appear. 

"13.  I  firmly  believe,  that  the  dead  will 
rise  at  the  time  appointed  by  the  Creator, 
whose  name  be  blessed,  and  his  glory  magnified 
throughout  all  ages,  to  all  eternity." 

The  Jews  were  so  strictly  attached  to  the 
worship  of  the  true  God,  long  before  the  birth 
of  Jesus  Christ,  that  no  remains  of  their  former 
inclination  to  idolatry  were  observed  in  them  ;* 

*  The  true  reason  why  the  Jews  were  so  prone  to 
idolatry  before  the  Babylonish  captivity,  and  why  they 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  335 

and,  therefore,  neither  Jesus  Christ  nor  his 
apostles  cast  any  reproaches  upon  them  on  that 
account.  But  because  they  received  several 
other  doctrines,  which  it  is  of  some  importance 
to  know,  beside  those  contained  in  these 
thirteen  articles,  I  shall,  therefore,  give  an  ac- 
count of  them,  beginning  with  that  which  re- 
lates to  the  birth  of  man. 

The  rabbins  acknowledge  that  there  is  in 
man  a  fund  of  corruption ;  and  the  Talmud 
speaks  of  original  sin  thus  : — "  We  ought  not 
to  be  surprised  that  the  sin  of  Eve  and  Adam 
was  so  deeply  engraven,  and  that  it  was  as  it 
were  sealed  with  the  king's  signet,  that  it  might 
be  thereby  transmitted  to  all  their  posterity  ;  it 
was  because  all  things  were  iinished  the  day 
that  Adam  was  created,  and  he  was  the  perfec- 
tion and  consummation  of  the  world ;  so  that 
when  he  sinned  all  the  world  sinned  with  him. 
We  partake  of  his  sin,  and  share  in  the  punish- 
ment of  it,  but  not  in  the  sins  of  his  de- 
scendants." 

The  rabbins  teach  that  the  wounds  which 
were  made  in  man  by  sin  will  be  cured  by  the 
Messiah  ;  but  they  say  there  will  be  two  Mes- 
siahs, one  of  which  shall  be  put  to  death,  and 
the  other  shall  appear  with  glory.      As  to  the 

were  so  cautiously  fixed  against  it  ever  after  that 
captivity,  plainly  appears  to  be  this,  that  they  had  the 
law  and  the  prophets  read  to  them  every  week  in  their 
synagogues  after  the  captivity,  which  they  had  not  be- 
fore; for  they  had  no  synagogues  till  after  it.  (Prid. 
Con.  part  i,  b.  vi, — under  the  year  444,  p.  559  of  the 
8vo  edition.) 


336  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

time  of  his  coming,  they  acknowledge  that  their 
fathers  believed  that  the  space  which  the 
world  was  to  last  was  six  thousand  years  ;  that 
of  these  God  appointed  two  thousand  for  the 
law  of  nature,  two  thousand  for  the  law  of 
Moses,  and  two  thousand  for  the  Messiah  ;  and 
that,  according  to  this  account,  the  Messiah 
must  have  come  much  about  the  same  time 
that  Jesus  Christ  was  born  and  died  :  but,  say 
they,  the  iniquities  of  men,  which  are  increased 
ad  infinitum,  have  obliged  God  to  let  a  great 
part  of  this  last  two  thousand  years  pass  away, 
before  the  coming  of  the  Messiah.  And  they 
now  forbid  the  making  of  any  computation  of 
the  years  of  his  coming. 

The  Jews  hate  all  the  rest  of  mankind  ;  they 
even  think  themselves  obliged  to  kill  them,  un- 
less they  submit  to  the  precepts  given  to  Noah  ; 
and  nobody  is  with  them  their  neighbour  but  an 
Israelite.*  And  what  praises  soever  they  may 
give  to  the  law  of  Moses,  yet  they  think  it  law- 
ful for  them  to  break  it  to  save  their  lives. 
They  seldom  make  use  of  the  name  of  God  in 
their  oaths  :  when  they  do,  it  makes  them  in- 
violable :  but  when  they  swear  by  the  crea- 
tures, they  do  not  look  on  those  as  sacred  ;  nor 
do  they  make  any  scruple  of  breaking  them : 

*  As  this  is  an  avowed  sentiment  of  all  the  ancient 
and  modern  Jews,  (see  page  262.)  we  may  see  how 
dangerous  it  would  be  to  permit  them  to  have  any 
rule  or  influence  in  any  nation  under  the  sun.  Had 
they  strength  and  authority,  their  career  would  be 
like  that  of  Mohammed;  every  man  must  be  butchered 
who  would  not  submit  to  be  circumcised. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  337 

and  this  gave  occasion  to  Jesus  Christ  and  his 
apostles  to  forbid  the  use  of  all  sorts  of  swear- 
ing, Matt,  v,  34,  in  order  thereby  to  correct 
that  horrid  abuse  of  oaths  which  was  common 
among  the  Jews,  when  the  name  of  God  wa9 
not  in  them. 


CHAPTER  Vll. 

Of  the  Hebrew  talent,  and  how  to  reduce  it  into 
English  money. 

Before  the  value  of  any  number  of  talents 
of  gold  can  be  found  in  sterling  money,  at  the 
rate  the  gold  in  Great  Britain  is  now  valued  at, 
which  is  21  shillings  the  guinea,  this  must  be 
premised,  viz.,  that  the  learned  Dr.  Prideaux, 
dean  of  Norwich,  in  his  valuation  of  a  talent 
of  gold,  makes  it  sixteen  times  the  present 
value  of  a  talent  of  silver ;  and,  according  to 
that  valuation,  one  pound  weight  of  pure  gold 
is  only  equal  in  value  to  sixteen  pounds  weight 
of  silver  that  has  eighteen  pennyweights  of 
alloy  in  each  pound  weight  of  it,  and  so  the  gold 
is  4Z.  an  ounce,  which,  indeed,  is  the  present 
value  of  an  ounce  of  pure  gold  ;  but  forasmuch 
as  the  standard  for  the  gold  coin  of  Great 
Britain  is  twenty-two  carats,  fine,  i.  e.,  the 
twelfth  part  of  every  ounce  of  it  is  alloy,  and 
so  an  ounce  of  it  is  of  less  value  than  4Z. 
sterling. 

The  best  way  to  find  the  present  value  of  one 
22 


338  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

ounce,  or  any  other  quantity,  is  by  the  rule  of 
three  direct  proportion,  to  say, 

As  5dw.  9gr.  is  to  21s,  so  is  \oz.  to  78.1394s. 

Note,  five  pennyweights,  nine  grains,  is  the 
exact  weight  of  one  guinea.  And  as  five 
pennyweights,  nine  grains,  is  in  proportion  to 
twenty-one  shillings,  so  is  one  ounce,  troy 
weight,  in  proportion  to  78.1394s.,  i.  e., 
SI.  18s.  l?3d.  sterling;  and  so  much  one  ounce 
troy,  of  the  coined  gold  of  Great  Britain 
is  worth,  at  the  rate  of  twenty. one  shillings  the 
guinea.  But  a  crown,  which  is  one  ounce 
troyweight,  is  better  worth  five  shillings  ster- 
ling, than  an  ounce  of  the  gold  coin  of  Great 
Britain  is  worth  37.  18s.  l^d.  sterling,  because 
one-twelfth  of  the  gold  coin  is  alloy,  and  there 
is  not  so  much  in  the  silver  coin. 

Now  to  find  the  present  value  of  any  number 
of  Hebrew  talents  of  gold,  this  is  the  rule  : — 

Multiply  78.1394s.  (the  present  value  of  an 
ounce  troy  of  the  gold  coin  of  Great  Britain) 
by  1800  ounces  troy,  (the  weight  of  a  Hebrew 
talent,)  and  the  product  will  be  the  value  of 
that  talent  in  shillings  sterling,  or  in  shillings 
and  part  of  a  shilling  sterling ;  then  mul- 
tiply the  product  by  the  number  of  talents,  the 
next  or  second  product  will  be  the  value  of  all 
the  talents  in  shillings  sterling,  or  in  shillings 
and  part  of  a  shilling  sterling :  divide  the 
second  product  by  twenty,  (the  shillings  in  the 
pound  sterling,)  and  the  quotient  will  be  the 
present  value  of  all  the  talents  in  pounds  ster- 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  339 

ling,  or  in  pounds  sterling  and  part  of  a 
pound  sterling.  And  so  the  present  value  of 
the  hundred  and  twenty  talents  of  gold  which 
it  is  said,  1  Kings  x,  10,  the  queqp  of  Sheba 
gave  to  King  Solomon,  will  be  found  to  be 
843905.52/.,  i.  e.,  eight  hundred  forty-three 
thousand  nine  hundred  and  five  pounds,  ten 
shillings,  and  four  pence  three  farthings 
sterling. 

For  if  78.1394^.  be  multiplied  by  1800 
ounces,  the  product  will  be  140650. 92s.  which 
multiplied  by  120,  the  next  product  will  be 
16878110.405.  which  divided  by  20s.  the 
quotient  will  be  843905.52?.,  equal  to 
843,905/.   10s.   Ad.   %q.   sterling. 

It  is  said  that  "  King  Solomon  made  two 
hundred  targets  of  beaten  gold;  six  hundred 
shekels  of  beaten  gold  went  to  one  target,"  2 
Chron.  ix,  15.  "  King  Solomon  made  like- 
wise three  hundred  shields  of  beaten  gold ; 
three  hundred  shekels  of  gold  went  to  one 
shield,"  2  Chron.  ix,  16. 

To  find  the  value  of  two  hundred  targets,  I 
consider  that  one  target  is  one-fifth  of  the 
weight  of  a  talent ;  for  a  talent  is  3000  shekels, 
and  a  target  is  but  600,  which  is  the  fifth  of 
3000,  therefore  one  of  the  targets  of  gold  is  but 
one-fifth  the  value  of  a  talent  of  gold  :  and  so 
this  will  be  the  rule  : — 

Divide  140650.920  (i.  e.,  the  shillings  ster- 
ling that  are  equal  to  one  talent  of  gold)  by 
five,  the  quotient  will  be  28130.184s.  (i.  e.,  the 
value  of  one  target,)  which  multiply  by  200$ 


340  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

(the  number  of  the  targets,)  the  product  will 
be  the  value  of  the  two  hundred  targets  in  shil- 
lings sterling  ;  divide  the  product  by  20s.  the 
quotient  v|jll  be  the  value  of  the  200  targets  in 
pounds  and  part  of  a  pound  sterling,  viz., 
281301.84/.  equal  to  281,301Z.  16s.  9±d.  See 
the  operation  following  : — 

Example. 
5)     140650.9205.  equal  to  one  talent  of  gold. 

Quotient,     28130.184s.  equal  to  one  target  of  gold. 
200  targets. 


Product,  5626036.8005.  equal  to  two  hundred  targets. 
20)  5626036.805. 

Quotient,     281301.84Z.  equal  to  281,301/.  16s.  9%d. 

To  find  the  value  of  the  300  shields  of  gold, 
each  containing  300  shekels,  equal  to  one-half 
of  a  target,  the  rule  is:  — 

Multiply  14065.092s.  (i.  e„  the  value  of  one 
shield,  equal  to  half  the  value  of  one  target,) 
by  300,  (the  number  of  shields,)  the  product 
will  be  the  value  of  the  300  shields  in  shillings 
and  part  of  a  shilling  sterling  :  divide  the  pro- 
duct by  20,  the  quotient  will  be  the  pounds  and 
part  of  a  pound  sterling  that  are  equal  in  value 
to  the  300  shields,  viz.,  210976. 38Z.,  equal  to 
210,976/.  7s.  Id.  See  the  operation  follow- 
ing :— 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  341 

Example. 

14065.0925.  the  value  of  one  shield. 
300  shields. 


Product,      4219527.6005.  equal  to  300  shields. 

20)    4219527.6005. 
GLuotient,      210976.387.  equal  to  210,9767.  75.  Id. 

In  1  Kings  x,  14,  we  are  told  that  the 
weight  of  gold  that  came  to  Solomon  in  one 
year,  was  666  talents.  And  by  the  preceding 
rule  the  reader  will  find  that  this  annual 
income  amounted  to  4,683,675/.  125.  8Jd. 
sterling.* 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Some  Account  of  the  Ancient  Samaritans. 

As  the  history  of  this  singular  people  is  so 
intimately  connected  with  that  of  the  ancient 
Israelites,  it  may  not  be  improper  to  give 
a  short  account  of  them  in  this  place. 

About  the  year  of  the  world  3295,  709 
before  the  Christian  era,  Sennacherib,  king 
of  Assyria,  having  failed  in  his  attempt  upon 

*  These  calculations,  in  which  I  have  followed 
Mr.  Reynolds,  ("  State  of  the  greatest  King,"  &c, 
p.  58)  will  be  found  materially  to  differ  from  those  of 
the  Abbe'  Fleury,  in  pp.  218,  219,  of  this  work  ;  but  as 
they  appeared  to  me  to  be  perfectly  correct,  I  judged 
them  of  too  much  consequence  to  be  omitted. 


342  MANNERS    OF    TKE    ISRAELITES. 

Judea,  and  becoming  cruel  and  tyrannical 
even  among  his  own  people,  in  consequence  of 
his  disappointment,  was  slain  by  his  two  eldest 
sons,  Adramelech  and  Sharezar,  while  wor- 
shipping in  the  house  of  his  god  Nisroch.  The 
parricides  having  fled,  Esarhaddon,  the  third 
son,  assumed  the  reins  of  government  in  the 
Assyrian  empire.  2  Kings  xix,  37  ;  1  Chron. 
xxxii,  21  ;  Isa.  xxxviii,  38.  After  he  had  fully 
settled  his  authority  in  Babylon,  he  began  to 
set  his  heart  on  the  recovery  of  what  had  been 
lost  to  the  empire  of  the  Assyrians,  in  Syria 
and  Palestine,  on  the  destruction  of  his  father's 
army  in  Judea.  Having  gathered  together  a 
great  army,  he  marched  into  the  land  of  Israel, 
and  took  captive  all  those  who  were  the  remains 
of  the  former  captivity,  (a  few  excepted  who 
escaped  into  the  mountains,  &c.,)  and  carried 
them  away  into  Babylon  and  Assyria.  As  the 
land  was  in  danger  of  becoming  entirely  deso- 
late through  lack  of  inhabitants,  he  brought 
colonies  from  Babylon,  Cutha,  Ava,  Hamath,  and 
Scphawa'un,  and  established  them  in  the  cities 
of  Samaria,  instead  of  those  whom  he  had  car- 
ried into  captivity.  2  Kings  xvii,  24  ;  Ezra 
iv,  2,  10.  And  thus  the  ten  tribes  which  had 
separated  from  the  house  of  David  were  brought 
to  an  utter  destruction,  and  could  never  after- 
ward assume  any  political  consequence. 

It  appears  that  some  considerable  time  must 
have  elapsed  from  the  captivity  of  the  Israel- 
ites of  Samaria,  before  the  above  heathen 
colonies  were  brought  in  ;  for  we  find  immedi- 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  343 

ately  on  their  settling  they  were  much  infested 
with  lions,  commissioned  by  the  Lord  to  be  a 
scourge  to  these  idolaters,  2  Kings  xvii,  25 ; 
and  which,  we  may  suppose,  had  multiplied 
greatly  after  the  desolation  of  the  land.  The 
king  of  Babylon  being  told  that  it  was  because 
they  worshipped  not  the  God  of  the  country, 
that  they  were  plagued  with  these  ferocious  ani- 
mals, ordered  that  one  of  the  captive  Jewish 
priests  should  be  sent  back,  to  teach  these  new 
settlers  the  manner  of  the  God  of  the  land,  2 
Kings  v,  26  ;  i.  e.,  how  to  worship  the  God  of 
Israel,  as  it  was  an  ancient  opinion  among  the 
heathens,  that  each  district  and  country  had  its 
peculiar  and  tutelary  deities.  A  priest  was  ac- 
cordingly sent  back,  who  took  up  his  residence 
at  Beth-el,  and  there  established  the  worship  of 
the  true  God,  and  the  heathens  incorporated 
this  worship  with  that  which  they  paid  to  their 
idols.  The  few  remaining  Jews  soon  became 
miserably  corrupted  both  in  their  manners  and 
religion,  and  while  Jehovah  was  feared  because 
of  his  supposed  superior  influence  in  that  land, 
all  the  other  gods  of  the  Babylonians,  Cuthites, 
Hamathites,  Avites,  and  Sepharvites,  had 
divine  honour  paid  to  them. 

This  monstrous  mixture  of  idolatry  with  the 
worship  of  the  true  God  continued  for  about 
three  hundred  years,  till  the  building  of  the  Sa- 
maritan temple  on  Mount  Gerizim,  by  San- 
ballat  the  Horonite,  about  A.  M.  3595, 
B.  C.  409.  As  the  Jewish  priesthood  had 
been  greatly  corrupted  by  impure  connections 


344  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

and  heathenish  alliances,  Sanballat  found  no 
difficulty  to  procure  a  priest,  a  regular  descend- 
ant of  the  house  of  Aaron,  to  officiate  in  the 
schismatical  temple  which  he  had  lately 
erected  ;  for  one  of  the  sons  of  Joiada  the  high 
priest,  whom  Josephus  calls  Manasseh,  (Antiq. 
b.  xi,  c.  vii,)  having  married  the  daughter  of 
Sanballat,  and  refusing  to  separate  from  her 
when  Nehemiah  insisted  on  all  the  Jews  to  put 
away  their  strange  wives  or  to  depart  the 
country,  Manasseh  fled  to  Samaria,  and  there 
became  high  priest  of  the  temple  on  Mount 
Gerizim,  built  bv  his  father-in-law.  Samaria 
now  became  a  common  asylum  for  refractory 
Jews ;  for  all  who  had  violated  the  law  by  eat- 
ing forbidden  meats,  &c,  and  were  called  to 
account  for  it,  fled  to  the  Samaritans,  by  whom 
they  were  kindly  received  ;  and  as  multitudes 
had  apostatized  in  this  way,  in  process  of  time 
the  major  part  of  the  people  were  made  up  of 
apostate  Jews  and  their  descendants.  This 
soon  brought  about  a  general  change  in  the 
religion  of  the  country  ;  for  as  they  had  hither- 
to worshipped  the  God  of  Israel  only  in  con- 
junction  with  their  false  gods,  after  a  temple 
was  built  among  them,  in  which  the  daily  ser- 
vice was  constantly  performed  in  the  very 
same  manner  as  in  Jerusalem,  and  the  law  of 
Moses  brought  to  Samaria  and  there  publicly 
read,  they  abandoned  the  worship  of  their  idols, 
and  became  wholly  conformed  to  the  worship 
of  the  true  God,  in  which  they  have  hitherto 
continued  with  undeviating  exactness ;  being 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  345 

in  many  respects  more  conscientious  than  the 
Jews  themselves.  (Prideaux  Connect,  vol.  i, 
p.  42,  &c. ;  vol.  ii,  p.  5S8,  &c.)  The  Jews, 
however,  considering  them  as  apostates,  hate 
them  worse  than  any  other  nation  ;  and  the 
Samaritans  consider  the  Jews  their  worst  and 
most  inveterate  enemies. 

It  is  necessary  to  observe  that,  as  out  of  Sa- 
maria no  prophet  arose  after  this  time,  and  the 
Jewish  prophets  having  inveighed  strongly 
against  the  Samaritan  corruptions,  they  have 
never  received  the  prophetical  writings  of  the 
Hebrews,  and  have  none  of  their  own  ;  so  that 
all  they  acknowledge  of  the  Jewish  Scriptures 
to  be  divine  is  the  five  books  of  Moses,  which 
they  have  in  the  most  scrupulous  and  con- 
scientious manner  preserved  till  the  present 
day ;  and  to  them  the  republic  of  letters  is 
obliged  for  the  preservation  of  the  ancient 
genuine  Hebrew  character,  now  called  the  Sa- 
maritan, which  was  thrown  aside  by  Ezra  wtien 
he  published  a  connected  edition  of  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures,  in  which  he  used  the 
Chaldee  character,  since  improperly  termed  the 
Hebrew.  (See  a  farther  account  of  this  in 
the  Bibliographical  Dictionary,  vol.  vii,  Succes- 
sion of  Sacred  Literature,  under  the  article 
Ezra.)  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  observe 
that  the  Pentateuch  is  printed  in  this  ancient 
Hebrew  character,  in  the  first  volume  of  the 
London  Polyglot,  and  its  various  readings  are 
given  in  a  parallel  column  in  the  first  volume 
of  Dr.  Kennicott's  Hebrew  Bible. 


346  manners  of  the  Israelites. 

Having  taken  this  general  view  of  the  rise 
and  continuance  of  this  remarkable  sect,  it  mav 
be  necessary  next  to  consider  what  their  "pre- 
sent state  is,  both  in  a  religious  and  civil  point 
of  view. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  short  Account  of  the  Samaritans  in  Judea  and  Egypt. 

The  present  state  of  the  Samaritans  in 
Egypt  and  Judea  cannot  be  better  known  than 
from  Dr.  Huntington's  Letters.  This  learned 
Englishman  had  seen  them  at  Cairo  and  Napo- 
lussa,  had  corresponded  with  them,  and  exa- 
mined them  upon  several  things  which  common 
travellers  generally  omit. 

"  There  are  no  Samaritans,"  he  observes, 
"  at  Damascus  ;  and  though  those  of  Sichem 
boast  of  their  numerous  brethren  at  Cairo,  I 
saw  there  but  one  Samaritan  and  his  wife,  who 
were  very  poor.  The  synagogue  is  a  little, 
nasty,  and  obscure  chamber.  Here  are  kept 
two  copies  of  the  law,  which  may  be  about  five 
hundred  years  old.  They  have  a  form  of  prayer, 
and  a  book  which  they  call  Joshua,  which  con- 
tains  a  very  short  chronicle  from  the  creation 
of  the  world  to  Mohammed.  This  false  prophet 
is  cursed  at  the  end  of  the  book,  but  that  word 
is  written  in  Samaritan,  that  the  Arabians  may 
not  understand  it  ;  lastly,  they  keep  in  this 
little   library  some   commentaries   on  the  law, 


MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  347 

written  in  Arabic.  This  is  the  language  in 
common  use,  except  when  they  quote  anv  pas- 
sage of  the  law,  or  write  the  names  of  their 
high  priests,  for  then  they  use  the  Samaritan 
characters. 

Those  of  Sichem  or  Napolussa  are  for  the 
most  part  farmers  of  the  customs,  and  collectors 
of  the  tribute  at  Sichem,  Gaza,  Joppa,  or  else 
are  secretaries  to  the  Bassa,  which  gives  them 
some  countenance.  They  walk  the  streets  well 
enough  dressed,  and  are  not  so  miserable  as  in 
other  places.  Their  principal,  Merchab  ben 
Yaconb,  wrote  to  me  at  Jerusalem.  The  letters 
were  signed  by  eighteen  persons,  which  were 
almost  all  of  consideration  at  Sichem. 

This  commissary  of  the  customs  was  after- 
ward  obliged  to  retire  to  Leghorn,  because  of 
the  persecutions  he  met  with  in  the  holy  land. 
These  Samaritans  boast  of  having  a  copy  of  the 
law  written  by  the  hand  of  Abisha.  "  We 
have,"  say  they  in  their  letters,  "a  sacred 
writing  ;  'tis  the  copy  of  the  law,  in  which  are 
found  these  words  ;  •  I,  Abisha,  the  son  of  Phi- 
neas,  the  son  of  Eleazar,  the  son  of  Aaron  the 
high  priest,  have  transcribed  this  copy  at  the 
door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  in 
the  thirteenth  year  of  the  children  of  Israel's 
entrance  into  the  holy  land,  or  upon  the  fron- 
tiers.' "  The  Samaritans  having  boasted  of 
this  copy,  I  was  willing,  in  a  second  journey  I 
made  to  Sichem,  to  examine  the  truth  of  the 
fact  with  my  own  eyes.  But  I  turned  over  the 
manuscript  long  enough  without   finding   the 


348  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

words  ;  and  the  Samaritans,  who  were  present, 
confessed  that  these  words  were  not  now  in 
their  copy  ;  that  they  were  there  formerly,  but 
somebody  had  maliciously  expunged  them. 

Thus,  instead  of  honestly  acknowledging 
their  imposture,  they  face  it  with  a  new  false- 
hood, and  sacrifice  their  conscience  to  a  chi- 
merical antiquity.  All  the  Samaritans  hate 
the  Jews  mortally  ;  for  this  traveller  relates 
that  they  having  one  day  asked  him  whether 
there  were  Hebrews  in  this  country,  they  were 
overjoyed  to  hear  there  were ;  but  when  he  went 
to  undeceive  them,  because  Ihey  took  the  Jews 
of  England  for  Samaritans,  they  would  not  be- 
lieve him  :  "  No,  no  !"  cried  they,  "  they  are 
Israelites,  Hebrews,  our  most  brotherly  brethren." 
As  they  do  not  give  the  Jews  the  title  of  He- 
brews, or  Israelites,  they  think  all  nations  do 
the  like.  And  indeed  they  fancy  that  they  are 
the  only  stock  of  ancient  Israel.  One  of  them 
had  a  design  to  come  and  see  those  whom  he 
called  his  brethren  in  England ;  but  understand- 
ing he  must  be  upon  the  sea  on  the  Sabbath, 
he  thought  it  was  breaking  the  rest  of  it,  and 
would  hear  no  more  of  the  voyage ;  for  they 
observe  the  Sabbath  with  the  utmost  strictness. 
They  do  not  pronounce  the  word  Jehovah,  but 
make  use  of  the  word  Sema  Kbv.  Mr.  Ludolf, 
with  a  great  deal  of  reason,  believed  it  to  be  the 
word  Shem  nw9  which  signifies  the  name,  by 
way  of  eminence.  What  is  more  surprising  is, 
that  the  Christians  of  Egypt  do  the  same  thing, 
never  pronouncing  the  word  Phta,  which  is  the 


MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES.  340 

name  the  Egyptians  gave  God,  to  signify  that 
he  did  every  thing  without  fraud,  with  art  and 
truth.     But  they  call  God  Ebrudi. 

"  Their  notions  of  the  Messiah  are  very  con- 
fused  and  very  different ;  but  they  always  speak 
honourably  of  him,  and  they  do  not  declaim 
much  against  those  that  worship  him.  Their 
hatred  to  the  other  Jews  makes  them  more 
moderate  perhaps  to  the  Christians." 

To  omit  nothing  that  concerns  the  religion 
of  the  Samaritans,  I  shall  here  add  the  confes- 
sion of  faith  which  the  high  priest,  Eleazar,  sent 
to  Scaliger,  in  the  name  of  the  synagogue  of 
Sichem,  which  that  great  man  consulted. 

"  1.  The  Samaritans  observe  the  Sabbath 
with  all  the  exactness  required  in  Exodus.  For 
none  of  them  goes  out  of  the  place  where  he  is 
on  the  Sabbath  day,  but  only  to  go  to  the  syna- 
gogue, where  they  read  the  law  and  sing  God's 
praises.  They  do  not  sleep  that  night  with 
their  wives,  and  neither  kindle,  nor  order  fire 
to  be  kindled  ;  whereas  the  Jews  transgress  the 
Sabbath  in  all  these  points.  For  they  go  out 
of  town,  have  fire  made,  sleep  with  their  wives, 
and  even  do  not  make  use  of  proper  ablutions. 

"  2.  They  hold  the  passover  to  be  their  first 
festival.  They  begin  at  sunset  by  the  sacrifice 
enjoined  for  that  purpose  in  Exodus.  But  they 
sacrifice  nowhere  but  on  Mount  Gerizim,  where 
they  read  the  law,  and  offer  prayers  unto  God, 
after  which  the  priest  dismisses  the  whole  con- 
gregation with  a  blessing. 

"  3.  They  celebrate  for  seven  days  together 


350  MANNERS  OF  THE  ISRAELITES. 

the  feast  of  the  harvest ;  but  they  do  not  agree 
with  the  Jews  concerning  the  day  on  which  it 
should  begin.  For  these  reckon  the  next  day 
after  the  solemnity  of  the  passover ;  whereas 
the  Samaritans  reckon  fifty  days,  beginning  the 
next  day  after  the  Sabbath,  which  happens  in 
the  week  of  unleavened  bread  ;  and  the  next 
day  after  the  seventh  Sabbath  following,  the 
feast  of  the  harvest  begins. 

"  4.  They  observe  the  feast  of  expiation  the 
tenth  of  the  seventh  month.  They  employ  the 
f<>ur-and-twcnty  hours  of  the  day  in  prayers  to 
God,  and  singing  his  praises,  and  fasting.  For 
all  except  sucking  children  fast  ;  whereas  the 
Jews  except  children  under  seven  years  of  age. 

"  5.  The  fifteenth  of  the  same  month  they 
celebrate  the  feast  of  the  tabernacles  upon  the 
same  Mount  Ger'rAm. 

"6.  They  never  defer  ctrcumcisum  farther  than 
the  eighth  day,  as  it  is  commanded  in  Genesis; 
whereas  the  Jews  sometimes  defer  it  longer. 

"  7.  They  are  obliged  to  wash  themselves  in 
the  morning,  when  they  have  slept  with  their 
wives,  or  have  contracted  any  defilement  in 
the  night ;  and  all  vessels  that  may  become  un- 
clean are  defiled  when  any  such  unclean  person 
touches  them. 

"8.  They  take  away  the  fat  from  sacrifices, 
and  give  the  priests  the  shoulder,  the  jaws,  and 
belly. 

"  9.  They  never  marry  their  neices  as  the 
Jews  do,  and  have  but  one  wife ;  whereas  the 
Jews  mav  have  manv, 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  351 

"  10.  They  believe  in  God,  in  Moses,  and 
Mount  Gerizim.  Whereas  the  Jews  put  their 
trust  in  others.  We  do  nothing,  say  they,  but 
what  is  expressly  commanded  in  the  law  by  the 
Lord,  who  made  use  of  the  ministry  of  Moses. 
But  the  Jews  swerve  from  what  the  Lord  hath 
commanded  in  the  law,  to  observe  what  their 
fathers  and  doctors  have  invented." 

Thus  far  their  creed  sent  to  Scaliger.  They 
say  that  Dr.  Huntington  persuaded  them  they 
had  brethren  at  London  ;  but  he  says  that  the 
Samaritans  were  misled  by  the  name  of  Israel- 
ites, and  thought  that  all  who  went  by  the  name 
of  Hebrews  were  Samaritans.  Some  fraud 
seems  to  have  been  practised  upon  them  relative 
to  this  subject,  in  order  to  get  a  copy  of  their 
law,  and  they  certainly  did  intrust  him  with  a 
copy  of  their  Pentateuch,  which  Dr.  Hunting, 
ton  seems  to  have  requested  from  them  in  the 
name  of  their  pretended  Samaritan  brethren  in 
England  :  at  least  so  \  am  led  to  understand 
their  letter  to  these  English  Samaritans,  a 
translation  of  which  I  subjoin  from  Basnage, 
that  the  fact  may  speak  for  itself.  Indeed  it 
is  a  literary  curiosity,  and  being  perfectly  au- 
thentic, is  worthy  of  particular  attention. 

A  Letter  of  the  Samaritans  to  their  Brethren  in 
England. 

In  the  name  of  the  almighty,  adorable  God; 
in  the  name  of  the  great  Lord,  who  is  by  him- 
self, our  God,  the  God  of  our  fathers,  Abraham, 
Isaac,  and  Jacob,  who  has  said  in  his  law,  "  I 


352  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

am  the  God  of  Bethel,"  the  supreme  God,  Lord 
of  heaven  and  earth,  God  Almighty,  who  has 
sent  Moses,  the  son  o^  Amram,  commissioned 
with  his  laws,  and  by  his  means  has  revealed 
the  holiness  of  Mount  Gerizim,  and  of  the  house 
of  God. 

We  salute  you,  O  synagogue  of  Israel,  the 
people  of  our  Lord  and  Master,  who  has  chosen 
this  people  above  all  nations  of  the  earth  ;  for 
you  are  a  people  holy  to  the  Lord.  We  call 
ourselves  Samaritans,  and  we  assure  you,  our 
brethren  in  Israel,  that  we  are  extremely  de- 
voted to  Moses  the  prophet,  and  to  the  holy 
law.  We  observe  the  Sabbath  as  God  has 
commanded,  for  on  that  day  nobody  moves  out 
of  his  place,  except  it  be  to  pay  his  devotions 
at  the  house  of  the  I.rord.  As  all  those  who 
sought  God  went  to  the  tabernacle  of  witness, 
we  do  nothing  there  hut  read  the  law,  praise 
God,  and  pav  him  our  thanksgivings  ;  and 
when  as  the  Jews  ride  on  horseback,  go  out  of 
the  city,  li^ht  fires  on  that  day,  and  converse 
witli  their  wives  ;  we  separate  ourselves  the 
night  of  the  Sabbath,  and  light  no  fire.  The 
Jews  do  not  wash  after  every  kind  of  pollution, 
but  MM  do.  and  purity  ourselves  thereby.  We 
pray  to  God  evening  and  morning  according 
to  the  command  he  bus  given  us,  "  You  shall 
offer  me  a  lamb  in  the  morning,  and  another 
lamb  between  the  two  evenings."  We  lie  upon 
the  ground  when  we  worship  God  before  Mount 
Gerizim,  the  house  of  God. 

We   have  seven    solemn  feasts   wherein  we 


MANNERS   OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  353 

assemble.  The  first  is  the  feast  of  the  passover, 
at  the  time  that  our  fathers  came  out  of  Egypt. 
We  sacrifice  the  lamb  the  fourteenth  day  of  the 
first  month,  at  evening,  a  little  before  sunset, 
ting,  and  eat  it  roasted,  with  unleavened  bread 
and  bitter  herbs.  We  make  this  sacrifice  only 
upon  Mount  Gerizim  ;  and  we  prepare  it  on  the 
first  day  of  the  month  Xisafi,  according  to  the 
Greeks.  We  reckon  seven  days  for  the  feast 
of  unleavened  bread  ;  six  whereof  we  eat  bread 
without  leaven.  On  the  seventh  we  go  early 
at  break  of  day  to  Mount  Gerizim,  to  celebrate 
the  feast  and  read  the  law.  When  prayers  are 
ended  the  priest  gives  the  blessing  to  the  people 
from  the  top  of  the  eternal  mountain.  We  do 
not  begin  to  reckon  the  fifty  days  of  the  feast 
of  the  harvest,  like  the  Jews,  from  the  morrow 
of  the  feast  of  the  passover,  but  we  reckon  them 
from  the  day  following  the  Sabbath  that  hap- 
pens in  the  feast  of  unleavened  bread,  till  the 
morrow  of  the  seventh  Sabbath,  on  which  we 
celebrate  the  feast  of  harvest  upon  Gerizim.  We 
celebrate  also  the  seventh  month,  which  begins 
with  the  feast  of  trumpets.  Ten  days  after  is 
that  of  propitiations  ;  in  which  we  sing  hymns 
and  say  prayers,  from  one  day  to  the  other,  night 
and  day.  The  women  and  children  fast  as  well 
as  the  men,  and  we  dispense  with  none  but  those 
that  suck  ;  whereas  the  Jews  dispense  with  all 
under  seven  years  old.  We  observe  the  feast 
of  tabernacles  upon  Mount  Gerizim  the  fifteenth 
of  the  seventh  month.  We  set  up  tabernacles, 
according  to  the  order  given  us  by  God,  "  Ye 

23 


354  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

shall  take  you  the  boughs  of  goodly  trees, 
branches  of  palm  trees,  and  the  boughs  of  thick 
trees  and  willows  of  the  brook."  We  spend 
seven  days  in  joy  under  these  tents,  and  on  the 
eighth  we  end  the  feast  of  the  Lord  with  a 
hymn. 

We  very  circumspectly  observe  whether  the 
conjunction  of  the  sun  and  moon  happen  in  the 
night,  or  in  the  day  before  noon.  If  it  happen 
before  noon,  that  day  is  the  first  of  the  month  ; 
but  if  it  happen  at  twelve  o'clock,  or  a  little 
after,  we  delay  the  beginning  of  the  month  till 
the  morrow.  If  the  conjunction  be  lunar,  the 
month  continues  twenty. nine  days,  but  thirty 
if  it  be  solar.  If  the  new  moon  falls  on  the 
eleventh  of  the  month  Adar  of  the  Greeks,  we 
intercalate  a  month,  and  reckon  thirteen  that 
year.  \nd  the  month  that  immediately  follows 
is  the  first  month  of  the  year.  But  if  the  month 
begins  on  the  twelfth  of  Adar  or  some  days 
after,  then  that  is  the  first  month  of  the  year, 
and  we  reckon  but  twelve  ;  for  the  week  of  un- 
leavened bread  must  be  in  the  month  Nisan. 
The  Jews  reckon  otherwise  than  we  ;  we  begin 
the  sabbatic  year  and  the  jubilee  from  the  first 
day  of  the  seventh  month. 

We  sprinkle  the  water  of  separation  the  third 
and  fourth  days,  upon  all  that  are  defiled  by 
the  contact  of  women,  and  we  sprinkle  it  seven 
days  upon  the  woman  who  has  an  issue  upon 
her.  The  woman  who  is  delivered  of  a  boy 
separates  only  forty-one  days  ;  and  eighty  if  it 
be  a  girl :  the  circumcision  is  made  exactly  on 


MANNERS    OF    THE      ISRAELITES.  355 

the  eighth  day  after  the  birth,  without  deferring 
it  one  single  day,  as  do  the  Jews.  We  purify 
ourselves  from  the  defilements  contracted  in 
sleep,  and  we  touch  none  of  the  unclean  things 
specified  in  the  law  without  washing  in  clean 
water.  We  offer  to  God  the  fat  of  the  victim, 
and  give  the  priest  the  shoulder,  the  jaw,  and 
the  ventricle. 

It  is  not  lawful  for  us  to  marry  a  niece,  or  a 
cousin,  as  is  done  by  the  Jews.  We  believe  in 
Moses,  and  in  Mount  Gerizim.  We  have 
priests  of  the  race  of  Levi,  descended  in  a  right 
line  from  Aaron  and  Phineas.  We  are  all  of 
the  tribe  of  Joseph,  by  Ephraim,  Manasses ; 
and  of  the  tribe  of  Levi.  Our  habitation  is  in 
the  holy  city  of  Sichem,  and  at  Gaza  ;  we  have 
a  copy  of  the  law,  written  in  the  time  of  grace, 
in  which  we  read  these  words :  J,  Abisha,  the 
son  of  Phineas,  the  son  of  Eleazar,  the  son  of 
Aaron,  have  written  this  copy  at  the  door  of  the 
tabernacle,  in  the  thirteenth  year  of  the  people 
of  IsracVs  entrance  into  the  land  of  Canaan, 
upon  its  frontiers.  W7e  read  this  law  in  He- 
brew, which  is  the  holy  tongue,  and  do  nothing 
but  according  to  the  commands  of  God,  given 
us  by  Moses,  the  son  of  Amram,  our  prophet, 
upon  whom  be  peace  for  ever  and  ever.  WTe 
give  you  notice,  you  that  are  our  brethren, 
children  of  Israel,  that  R.  Huntington,  an  un- 
circumcised  man,  is  arrived  here  from  Europe, 
and  has  acquainted  us  that  you  are  a  great 
people,  composed  of  men  pure  and  holy  like 
ourselves,  and  that  you  have  sent  him  to  desire 


356  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

of  us  a  copy  of  the  law  ;  to  whom  we  would 
not  give  credit  till  he  had  written  before  us 
some  characters  of  the  holy  language  ;  in  order 
to  assure  you  that  we  have  the  same  Mosaic 
religion  that  you  profess,  and  if  we  had  not  been 
willing  to  oblige  you,  we  should  not  have  sent 
a  copy  of  the  law  by  the  hands  of  the  uncir- 
cumcised,  for  that  is  a  reproach  to  us.  Never- 
theless we  have  committed  it  to  him,  with  two 
other  little  books,  that  we  might  not  absolutely 
deny  your  request.  We  also  conjure  you  in 
the  name  of  the  living  God  not  to  deny  ours, 
and  to  tell  us  what  religion  you  are  of?  Tell, 
us  what  is  the  language  you  speak,  the  city 
you  live  in,  the  king  that  governs  you,  and  what 
religion  he  professes  ?  Have  ye  any  priests  of 
the  race  of  Phineas  ?  Have  ye  only  one  priest  ? 
In  the  name  of  God  tell  us  the  truth,  without 
any  shadow  of  dissimulation;  and  send  us  a 
copy  of  the  law,  as  we  have  sent  you  ours. 
Send  us  also  some  learned  men,  some  prophets, 
some  persons  of  repute,  and  especially  some 
descendant  of  Phineas  ;  for  know  that  God  has 
chosen  us  children  of  Israel  to  be  his  people, 
and  to  live  at  Gerizim,  according  to  what  he 
has  said,  Ye  shall  seek  their  habitation,  and 
shall  go  there.  He  has  said  also,  You  shall 
keep  three  feasts  every  year  :  the  males  shall 
rejoice  three  times  a  year  before  the  Lord. 
Know,  also,  that  all  the  prophets  are  buried  in 
the  territory  of  Sichem  :  our  father  Joseph, 
Eleazar,  Ithamar,  Phineas,  Joshua,  Caleb,  the 
seventy  elders,  with  Eldad  and  Medad. 


HANXEKa    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  357 

If  you  are  willing  to  oblige  us,  acquaint  us 
whether  you  are  devoted  to  Moses  and  his  law, 
to  Gerizim  and  the  house  of  God  ;  and  send  us 
some  persons,  without  being  concerned  about 
the  length  of  the  journey.  Do  not  intrust  a 
Jew,  for  they  hate  us.  If  you  send  us  any  de- 
puty, give-us  notice  of  it  by  some  friend.  If  ye 
have  the  book  of  Joshua,  and  any  liturgy,  send 
us  that  also. 

Tell  us  what  your  law  is.  As  for  us,  we  call 
the  law  what  begins  with  the  first  word  of 
Genesis,  (iTiMOa)  and  ends  with  the  last  of 
Deuteronomy,  (S{Oiy\)  Cause  all  this  to  be 
copied  for  us  in  the  holy  tongue,  and  tell  us  by 
what  name  you  go  ?  We  adjure  you  by  the 
name  of  the  living  God  not  to  suffer  a  year  to 
run  over  your  heads  without  giving  us  an  an- 
swer. In  the  meantime,  we  bless  God,  tho 
Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  and  we  implore  his 
mercy  and  his  justice,  to  instruct  you  in  all 
that  can  please  him,  and  to  guide  you  in  the 
good  way,  amen.  May  he  preserve  you  and 
deliver  you  from  the  hands  of  your  enemies, 
and  gather  you  together  from  your  dispersions 
into  the  land  of  your  fathers,  through  the  merits 
of  Moses.  We  add  that  this  is  our  faith  :  we 
believe  in  God,  in  Moses  his  servant,  in  the  holy 
law,  in  Mount  Gerizim,  the  house  of  God,  and 
in  the  day  of  vengeance  and  peace.  Blessed 
for  ever  be  our  God,  and  let  his  peace  rest  upon 
Moses,  the  son  of  Amram,  the  righteous,  per- 
fect, pure,  and  faithful  prophet.  We  have 
written  this  letter  at  Sichem,  near  Gerizim,  the 


8f)8  MANNERS    OF  THE    ISRAELITES. 

15th  day  of  the  sixth  month,  which  is  the  27th 
day  of  the  lunar  month,  in  the  6111th  year  of 
the  creation  of  the  world,  according  to  the 
Greeks  ;  the  second  from  the  year  of  rest. 
This  year  the  seventh  month  will  begin  the 
fourth  of  Elul,  according  to  the  Greeks  ;  and 
the  next  year  is  the  3411th  from  the  entrance 
into  the  land  of  Canaan.     God  be  blessed. 

May  this  letter  by  the  help  of  God  arrive  into 
the  city  England,  to  the  synagogue  of  the  Sa- 
maritan children  of  Israel,  whom  God  preserve. 
It  is  written  by  the  synagogue  of  Israel  dwell- 
ingat  Sichem.  "  Mechah,  the  son  of  Jacob,  a 
descendant  of  Ephraim,  the  son  of  Joseph,  was 
the  secretary." 

The  Samaritan  Pentateuch,  which  it  appears 
from  the  above  that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Huntington 
(then  chaplain  to  the  Turkey  company  at  Alep- 
po, and  afterward  bishop  of  Rapho,  in  Ireland) 
had  requested  from  them  in  the  name  of  the 
Samaritans  dwelling  in  England,  is  Cod.  65  in 
Kennicott's  collection.  Mr.  H.  had  made  it  a 
present  to  Abp.  Marsh.  It  seems  it  had  been 
highly  prized  by  its  Samaritan  possessor  ;  for, 
says  Mr.  Huntington,  in  an  epistle  to  Ludolf, 
he  had  it  in  his  bosom,  suspended  from  his  neck. 
Kennicott  supposes  it  to  have  been  written 
about  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century. 
The  33d  and  34th  chapters  of  Deuteronomy 
are  supplied  in  this  manuscript  by  Marcab  ben 
Yacoub,  the  writer  of  the  above  epistle.  The 
manuscript  is  in  the  12mo  form. 

In  the  year  1790   I  met  with  "  an  epistle 


MANNERS   OF   THE    ISRAELITES.  359 

from  the  Samaritans  at  Sichcm  to  the  Sama- 
ritans of  England,"  in  Marsh's  Library,  St. 
Patrick's,  Dublin,  neatly  written  in  a  very 
legible  Samaritan  character  upon  paper ;  it  is 
probably  the  same  with  that  mentioned  above  : 
I  began  to  transcribe  it  as  a  curiosity,  but 
could  not  find  opportunity  to  finish  it.  It  is 
directed  in  the  following  manner  : — 

Laedeth  hence  y Israel  hashemerecm  hashoketieem 

baair  angeland : 
"  To  the  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel, 
the  Samaritans  dwelling  in  the  city  England." 
I  mention  this  circumstance  here,  that  any  of 
the  literati  who  are  curious  in  oriental  matters 
may  know  the  residence  of  such  a  curiosity,  and 
consult  it  when  opportunity  may  offer.  If  my 
recollection  be  correct,  a  part  of  the  epistle  is 
accompanied  with  a  Latin  translation. 

For  farther  information  relative  to  this  peo- 
ple, I  must  refer  the  reader  to  Prideaux's  Con- 
nections, as  quoted  above ;  to  Ludolfs  and 
Huntington's  Letters,  and  to  Basnage's  History 
of  the  Jews,  Whether  any  remains  of  this 
very  ancient  sect  of  mongrel  Jews  be  now  in 
existence  at  Sichem  or  elsewhere,  I  have  not 
been  able  to  learn. 


360  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


CHAPTER  X. 

State  of  the  Modern  Jews — Their  Liturgy. 

There  is  some  reason  to  fear  that  many 
Jews  in  the  present  day  have  drunk  deeply  into 
the  infidel  spirit  of  the  limes,  and  no  longer  re- 
ceive the  writings  of  the  Old  Testament  as 
divinely  inspired.  A  Jewish  rabbi,  a  man  of 
extensive  information,  and  considerable  learn- 
ing, lately  observed  to  me  that,  "  as  Moses 
had  to  do  with  a  grossly  ignorant,  stupid,  and 
headstrong  people,  he  was  obliged  to  have  re- 
course to  a  pious  fraud,  and  pretended  that  the 
laws  he  gave  them  were  sent  to  him  by  the 
Creator  of  all  things  :  and  that  all  the  ancient 
legislators  and  formers  of  new  states,  who  had 
a  barbarous  people  to  govern,  were  obliged  to 
act  in  the  same  way,  such  as  Menu,  Numa, 
Lycurgus,  Mohammed,  &c. ;  and  that  the  time 
was  very  near  at  hand,  when  all  the  inhabitants 
of  the  civilized  world  would  be  of  one  religion, 
viz.,  Deism,  which,  he  said,  was  a  system  of 
truth,  compounded  from  Judaism,  Moham- 
medanism, Christianity,  and  the  writings  of  the 
ancient  heathen  philosophers!"  When  I  ex- 
pressed my  surprise  at  hearing  a  Jew  talk  thus, 
and  asked  him  if  any  of  his  brethren  were  of 
the  same  mind,  he  answered  with  considerable 
emotion,  "  Yes,  every  intelligent  Jew  in  Eu- 
rope who  reflects  on  the  subject  is  of  the  same 
mind."  If  this  rabbi's  testimony  be  true,  the 
children  of  Jacob  are  deplorably  fallen  indeed! 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  361 

And  from  the  manner  in  which  they  conduct 
what  they  call  the  worship  of  God,  who  would 
suppose  they  either  credit  his  word,  or  believe 
in  his  existence  ?  It  cannot  be  called  even  a 
solemn  mockery;  the  irreligion  of  it  is  too  bare- 
faced to  have  any  pretensions  to  solemnity,  or, 
indeed,  even  to  decorum* 

Having  brought  the  work  thus  far,  I  think  it 
proper  to  conclude  the  whole  with  some  ac- 
count of  the  Jewish  liturgy. 

In  former  times  their  synagogue  service  was 
composed  of  prayers,  reading  the  Scriptures  and 
expounding  them.  At  present  the  latter  is  not 
generally  regarded.  At  first  their  prayers 
were  short  and  simple.  Our  Lord's  prayer  is  a 
model  of  this  kind,  and  seems  to  have  been 
taken  from  some  of  the  Jewish  forms  extant  in 
his  time  :  at  least,  every  petition  of  it  is  found 
in  the  ancient  Jewish  writings  :  but  even  then 
there  were  some  hypocritical  Pharisees  who 
made  long  prayers,  and  these  our  Lord  most 
cuttingly  reprehends.     The  liturgy  of  the  mo- 

*  A  friend  of  mine  went  into  the  synagogue,  in 
Duke's  Place,  Houndsditch,  London,  to  observe 
the  method  in  which  they  conducted  their  worship  ; 
happening  to  come  near  a  Jew  who  was  deeply 
engaged  in  loudly  chanting  his  part  of  the  sacred 
office,  he  unfortunately  trod  on  his  toes ;  he  instantly 
suspended  his  reading,  and  with  a  countenance  as 

fierce  as  a  tiger,  cried,  " your  eyes,  can't  you 

see  1"  and  then  recollecting  his  piety  anew,  he 
immediately  resumed  his  sacred  employment,  and 
with  the  same  devotion  as  before  continued  to  accom- 
pany his  brethren,  having  lost  but  about  two  seconds 
in  pronouncing  his  execration. 


86'2  MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES. 

dern  Jews  is  greatly  increased  in  size,  which 
makes  their  synagogue  service  long  and  tedious, 
and  the  rubric  by  which  they  regulate  it  is  very 
intricate,  perplexed,  and  encumbered  with  many 
rites  and  ceremonious  observances ;  in  all  of 
which,  says  Dr.  Prideaux,  they  equal  if  not  ex- 
ceed both  the  superstition  and  length  of  the 
popish  service.  (Maimonides  in  Tephillah. ; 
and  Prideaux's  Con.  vol.  ii,  p.  538.) 

The  most  solemn  part  of  their  prayers  are 
those  which  they  call  nii^j;  nJl?r^  Shemoneh 
Esreh  :  i.  e.,  The  eighteen  prayers.'*  These, 
they  say,  were  composed  by  Ezra  and  the 
great  synagogue  :  and  to  them  Rab.  Gamaliel,  a 
little  before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  added 
the  nineteenth  against  the  Christians,  who  are 
intended  under  the  names  of  apostates  and 
heretics.  These  prayers  are  allowed  to  be  very 
ancient,  for  mention  is  made  of  them  in  the 
Mishnah,  (Berachoth,  c.  iv,  s.  3,)  as  old  settled 
forms ;  and  they  were  doubtless  (at  least  the 
major  part  of  them)  used  in  our  Saviour's  time. 
(See  Prideaux.)  That  which  was  formerly  the 
nineteenth  prayer  is  now  the  twelfth  in  the  order 
in  which  they  stand  in  the  Jewish  liturgies. 
The  first  part,  or  rather  the  precatory  part  of 
each  article,  was  pronounced  by  the  priest :  the 
last  or  eucharistical  part  was  the  response  of 
the  people. 

*  The  10th,  11th,  14th,  and  17th,  seem  to  refer  to  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem  ;  and,  consequently,  to  have 
been  composed  after  that  period.  Yet  it  is  probable 
that  these  may  refer  to  the  calamities  of  more  ancient 
times. 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  363 

"  1.  Blessed  be  thou,  O  Lord  our  God,  the 
God  of  our  fathers,  the  God  of  Abraham,  the 
God  of  Isaac,  the  God  of  Jacob,  the  great 
God,  powerful  and  tremendous,  the  high 
God,  bountifully  dispensing  benefits,  the 
Creator  and  possessor  of  the  universe,  who 
rememberest  the  good  deeds  of  our  fathers, 
and  in  thy  love  sendest  a  Redeemer  to  those 
who  are  descended  from  them,  for  thy  name's 
sake,  O  King,  our  Lord  and  helper,  our 
Saviour  and  our  shield.  Blessed  art  thou* 
O  Lord,  who  art  the  shield  of  Abraham. 

"  2.  Thou,  O  Lord,  art  powerful  for  ever, 
thou  raisest  the  dead  to  life,  and  art  mighty  to 
save ;  thou  sendest  down  the  dew,  stillest  the 
winds,  and  makest  the  rain  to  come  down  upon 
the  earth,  and  sustainest  with  thy  beneficence 
all  that  are  therein ;  and  of  thy  abundant 
mercy  makest  the  dead  again  to  live.  Thou 
raisest  up  those  who  fall ;  thou  healest  the 
sick  ;  thou  loosest  them  who  are  bound,  and 
makest  good  thy  word  of  truth  to  those  who 
sleep  in  the  dust.  Who  is  to  be  compared  to 
thee,  O  thou  Lord  of  might !  and  who  is  like 
unto  thee,  O  ofur  King,  who  killest  and  makest 
alive,  and  makest  salvation  to  spring  as  the 
grass  in  the  field !  Thou  art  faithful  to  make 
the  dead  to  rise  again  to  life.  Blessed  art  thou, 
O  Lord,  who  raisest  the  dead  again  to  life  ! 

"  3.  Thou  art  holy,  and  thy  name  is  holy, 
and  thy  saints  do  praise  thee  every  day, 
selah.  For  a  great  King  and  a  holy  art  thou,  O 
God.     Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord  God  most  holy  ! 


364  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

"  4.  Thou  of  thy  mercy  givest  knowledge 
unto  men,  and  teachest  them  understanding : 
give  graciously  unto  us  knowledge,  wisdom, 
and  understanding.  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord, 
who  graciously  givest  knowledge  unto  men  ! 

"  5.  Bring  us  hack,  O  our  Father,  to  the  ob- 
servance of  thy  law,  and  make  us  to  adhere  to 
thy  precepts,  and  do  thou,  O  our  King,  draw  us 
near  to  thy  worship,  and  convert  us  to  thee  by 
perfect  repentance  in  thy  presence.  Blessed 
art  thou,  O  Lord,  who  vouchsafest  to  receive  us 
by  repentance! 

"  6.  Be  thou  merciful  unto  us,  O  our  Father, 
pardon  us,  O  our  King,  for  we  have  trans- 
gressed against  thee.  For  thou  art  a  God, 
good  and  ready  to  pardon.  Blessed  art  thou, 
O  Lord  most  gracious,  who  multipliest  thy 
mercies  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins  ! 

"  7.  Look,  we  beseech  thee,  upon  our  afflic- 
tions. Be  thou  on  our  side  in  all  our  conten- 
tions, and  plead  thou  our  cause  in  all  our  litiga- 
tions ;  and  make  haste  to  redeem  us  with  a  per- 
fect redemption  for  thy  name's  sake.  For  thou 
art  our  God,  our  King,  and  a  strong  Redeemer. 
Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  the  Redeemer  of  Israel ! 

"  8.  Heal  us,  O  Lord  our  God,  and  we  shall 
be  healed  ;  save  us,  and  we  shall  be  saved. 
For  thou  art  our  praise.  Bring  unto  us  sound 
health,  and  a  perfect  remedy  for  all  our  in- 
firmities, and  for  all  our  griefs,  and  for  all  our 
wounds.  For  thou  art  a  God  who  healest,  and 
art  merciful.  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord  our  God, 
who  curest  the  diseases  of  thy  people  Israel ! 


MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  3G5 

"  9.  Bless  us,  O  Lord  our  God,  in  every 
work  of  our  hands",  and  bless  unto  us  the  sea- 
sons  of  the  year,  and  give  us  the  dew  and  the 
rain  to  be  a  blessing  unto  us,  upon  the  face  of 
all  our  land,  and  satiate  the  world  with  thy 
blessings,  and  send  down  moisture  upon  every 
part  of  the  earth  that  is  habitable.  Blessed  art 
thou,  O  Lord,  who  givest  thy  blessing  to  the 
years ! 

"  10.  Gather  us  together  by  the  sound  ot 
the  great  trumpet,  to  the  enjoyment  of  our 
liberty,  and  lift  up  thy  ensign  to  call  together 
all  the  captivity,  from  the  four  quarters  of  the 
earth  into  our  own  land.  Blessed  art  thou, 
O  Lord,  who  gatherest  together  the  exiles  of 
the  people  of  Israel  ! 

"  11.  Restore  unto  us  our  judges  as  at  the 
first,  and  our  counsellors  as  at  the  beginning  ; 
and  remove  far  from  us  affliction  and  trouble, 
and  do  thou  only  reign  over  us  in  benignity, 
and  in  mercy,  and  in  righteousness,  and  in 
justice.  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord  our  King, 
who  lovest  righteousness  and  justice! 

"  12.  *Let  there  be  no  hope  to  them  who 
apostatize  from  the  true  religion  ;  and  let  he- 
retics, how  many  soever  there  be,  all  perish  as 
in  a  moment.  And  letf  the  kingdom  of  pride 
be  speedily  rooted  out  and  broken  in  our  days. 
Blessed    art   thou,  O  Lord  our  God,  who  de- 

*  This  is  the  prayer  which  was  added  by  Rabbi 
Gamaliel  against  the  Christians,  or,  as  others 
say,  by  Rabbi  Samuel  the  little,  who  was  one  of  his 
scholars. 

t  The  Roman  empire, 


366  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

stroyest  the  wicked,  and  bringest  down  the 
proud  ! 

"  13.  Upon  the  pious  and  the  just,  and  upon* 
the  proselytes  of  justice,  and  upon  the  remnant 
of  thy  people  of  the  house  of  Israel,  let  thy 
mercies  be  moved,  O  Lord  our  God,  and  give  a 
good  reward  unto  all  who  faithfully  put  their 
trust  in  thy  name,  and  grant  us  our  portion 
with  them,  and  for  ever  let  us  not  be  ashamed, 
for  we  put  our  trust  in  thee.  Blessed  art  thou, 
O  Lord,  who  art  the  support  and  confidence  of 
the  just ! 

"  14.  Dwell  thou  in  the  midst  of  Jerusalem 
thy  city,  as  thou  hast  promised  ;  build  it  with 
a  building  to  last  for  ever,  and  do  this  speedily 
even  in  our  days.  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord, 
who  bulkiest  Jerusalem ! 

"  15.  Make  the  offspring  of  David  thy  ser- 
vant speedily  to  grow  up,  and  flourish,  and  let 
our  horn  be  exalted  in  thy  salvation.  For  we 
hope  for  thy  salvation  every  day.  Blessed  art 
thou,  O  Lord,  who  makest  the  horn  of  our  sal- 
vation to  nourish  ! 

"  16.  Hear  our  voice,  O  Lord  our  God  : 
most  merciful  Father,  pardon  and  have  mercy 

*  The  proselytes  of  justice  were  such  as  received 
the  whole  Jewish  law,  and  conformed  in  all  things  to 
their  religion.  Other  proselytes  there  were  who  con- 
formed only  to  the  seven  precepts  of  the  sons  of  Noah, 
and  these  were  called  proselytes  of  the  gate,  because 
they  worshipped  only  in  the  outer  court  of  the  temple, 
and  were  admitted  no  farther  than  the  gate  leading 
into  the  inner  courts.  Of  all  these  we  have  already 
spoken,  pp.  99,  261. 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  367 

upon  us,  and  accept  of  our  prayers  with  thy 
mercy  and  favour,  and  send  us  not  away  from 
thy  presence,  O  our  King.  For  thou  nearest 
with  mercy  the  prayer  of  thy  people  Israel. 
Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  who  hearest  prayer  ! 

"  17.  Be  thou  well  pleased,  O  Lord  our 
God,  with  thy  people  Israel,  and  have  regard 
unto  their  prayers;  restore  thy  worship  to* 
the  inner  part  of  thy  house,  and  make  haste 
with  favour  and  love  to  accept  of  the  burnt- 
sacrifices  of  Israel,  and  their  prayers ;  and  let 
the  worship  of  Israel  thy  people  be  continually 
well  pleasing  unto  thee.  Blessed  art  thou, 
O  Lord,  who  restorest  thy  divine  presence  to 
Zion ! 

"  18.  We  will  give  thanks  unto  thee  with 
praise.  For  thou  art  the  Lord  our  God,  the 
God  of  our  fathers  for  ever  and  ever.  Thou  art 
our  rock,  and  the  rock  of  our  life,  and  the 
shield  of  our  salvation.  To  all  generations 
will  we  give  thanks  unto  thee,  and  declare  thy 
praise,  because  of  our  life  which  is  always  in 
thy  hands,  and  because  of  thy  signs,  which  are 
every  day  with  us,  and  because  of  thy  wonders, 
and    marvellous  loving  kindnesses,  which  are 

*  i.  e.  The  adytum  templi,  which  in  the  temple 
of  Jerusalem  was  the  holy  of  holies,  into  which  none 
ever  entered  but  the  high  priest  once  a  year,  on  the 
great  day  of  expiation.  From  this  place,  after  the 
Babylonish  captivity,  were  wanting  the  ark,  the 
mercy  seat,  the  shechinah  of  the  divine  presence  and 
the  Urim  and  Thummim,  which  causing  an  imperfec- 
tion in  their  worship  in  respect  of  what  it  was 
formerly,  a  restoration  of  them  seems  to  be  what  is 
prayed  for  in  this  place. 


368  MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

morning,  and  evening,  and  night,  before  us. 
Thou  art  good,  for  thy  mercies  are  not  eon- 
sumed  ;  thou  art  merciful,  for  thy  loving  kind- 
nesses fail  not.  For  ever  we  hope  in 
thee.  And  for  all  these  mercies  be  thy 
name,  O  King,  blessed,  and  exalted,  and  lifted 
up  on  high  for  ever  and  ever ;  and  let  all  that 
live  give  thanks  unto  thee.  Selah.  And  let 
them  in  truth  and  sincerity  praise  thy  name, 
O  God  of  our  salvation,  and  our  help.  Selah. 
Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  whose  name  is  good, 
and  to  whom  it  is  fitting  always  to  give  praise. 
"  19.  (rive  peace,  beneficence,  benediction, 
grace,  benignity,  and  mercy  unto  us,  and  to 
Israel  thy  people.  Bless  us,  our  Father,  even 
all  of  us  together  as  one  man,  with  the  light  of 
thy  countenance.  For  in  the  light  of  thy 
countenance  hast  thou  given  unto  us,  O  Lord 
our  God,  the  law  of  life,  and  love,  and 
benignity,  and  righteousness,  and  blessing,  and 
mercy,  and  life,  and  peace.  And  let  it  seem 
good  in  thine  eyes  to  bless  thy  people  Israel 
with  thy  peace  at  all  times,  and  in  every  mo- 
ment.  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  who  blessest 
thy  people  Israel  with  peace.      Amen.'" 


"  God  hath  given  them  the  spirit  of  slumber; 
eyes  that  they  should  not  see,  and  ears  that 
they  should  not  hear  unto  this  day. 

"  Behold  the  goodness  and  severity  of  God ; 
on  them   who  fell   severity,   but    toward    the 


MANNERS    OF    THE     ISRAELITES.  369 

goodness,    if  thou    continue    in    his  goodness, 
otherwise  thou  also  shalt  be  cut  off. 

"  Blindness  in  part  is  happened  to  Israel, 
until  the  fulness  of  the  Gentiles  be  come  in. 
And  so,  all  Israel  shall  be  saved  :  for  there 
shall  come  out  of  Zion  the  Deliverer,  and 
shall  turn  away  ungodliness  from  Jacob," 
Paul,  Rom.  xi. 

Aspice,  venturo  latentur  ut  omnia  seclo  : 
O  mihi  tarn  longce  maneat  pars  ultima  vita, 
Spiriius  et  quantum  sat  erit  tua  dicere  facta  ! 


TALIA    SECLA    CURRITE  ! 

*  Virg.  Bucol.  iv. 

24 


1+ 


INDEX 

TO 

MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 


Abraham,  a  sort  of  king,  29 ;  numerous  servants,  30  ; 
waits  on  his  guests,  34. 

Adam,  probably  the  first  who  offered  a  sacrifice,  295, 
note. 

Administration  of  justice  among  the  Israelites,  203. 

Adoring,  what,  11!). 

Age,  the  first  foundation  of  authority,  200. 

Agriculture,  see  Husbandry. 

Alienation  of  lands  revoked  every  fifty  years  among 
the  Israelites,  66. 

Altars  erected  for  memoriae  of  great  events,  27. 

Altaschith,  what,  139. 

Angel  of  the  church,  what  it  signifies,  327,  in  the 
note. 

Anointing,  reason  of  it,  82. 

Animals  used  in  sacrifice,  299,  300;  manner  of  kill- 
ing such,  300;  flaying,  salting,  &c..  301,  302; 
offered  at  the  door  of  the  tabernacle,  303. 

Animals,  different,  eaten  and  abstained  from  among 
different  nations,  90,  91. 

Apostles  among  the  Jews,  their  office,  245. 

Arms,  all  persons  capable  of  using  them,  ecclesiastics 
as  well  as  laymen,  made  up  the  ancient  militia, 
210  ;  what  the  ancient  arms  consisted  of,  211 ;  not 
worn  by  the  Israelites  except  on  duty,  211. 

Arts,  curious  ones  among  the  Hebrews,  69,  70. 

Artificers,  few  among  the  Israelites  till  the  time  of 
David,  73,  74;  many  of  the  Greek  heroes  such,  72. 

Arure  of  land,  how  much,  59. 

Asmoneans,  see  Maccabees. 

Athenians,  how  at  first  divided,  39. 

Ayeleth  Shahar,  what,  138. 


372         INDEX — MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Babylon,  the  fertility  of  its  plains,  50. 

Bakers,  when  first  at  Rome,  71. 

Balsam  tree  only  found  anciently  in  Palestine,  57. 

Baptism  administered  to  proselytes,  263;  how  per- 
formed, 26-1 ;  how  administered  to  women,  267. 

Bathing,  why  frequent  in  the  east,  81. 

Beards,  long,  worn  by  the  Israelites,  81. 

Bedsteads  in  the  east  often  of  ivorv,  and  placed  against 
the  wall,  83. 

Bissextile,  how  computed,  290. 

Book's  now  lost  referred  to  in  the  Old  Testament,  120. 

Brahmins  neither  kill  nor  eat  animals,  ill. 

Bread,  bow  much  pel  day  a  man  eats,  GO;  very  little 
bread  let  pi  among  the  Israelites,  71  ;  the  word  used 
in  Scripture  means  all  sorts  of  victuals,  88. 

Breastplate,  325,  396. 
Briton-,  ancient,  their  dress,  -j2. 
Bin  ial.  the  manner  « •  I  it  among  the  Israelites,  158;  no 
religions  ceremony  used  at  ft,  159 

Byssus,  what  it  was,  7'.'. 

Cake-  of  libation.  302;  called  nakuieem,  89. 

Calends,  what,  290. 

Can  an.  the  Israelites  prohibited  from  marrying  with 
his  descendants,  10,99;  Canaanites  tin- same  with 
Phoenicians,  69  ;  their  tribes,  870. 

Canopies,  the  use  of  tin  in  in  the  east,  6 1 

i  rity  of  ill-'  ten  tribes  ah  ive  a  hundred  years 
re  that  of  the  other  two,  923;  the  consequences 
of  captivity  anciently,  and  oi  Israel  and  Judah 
in  particular,  224  j  'hi'  restoration  of  Judah  from  it, 
22o;  much  reformed  by  it.  288;  how  long  after  it 
before  theyconld  rebuild  their  city  and  temple,  229. 

Castration  of  entile  prohibited  to  tin-  [sraelit*  s,  66 

:. -or,  writes   of  country  affi  18;    his 

opinion  of  the  pastoral  life,  39;  a  maxim  in  his 

ne  1  ith  one  in  Piov.  xxiw  jfl    |9 

•  try  of  little  use  in  mountainous  countries,  213; 

bidden  to  the  Israelites,  though  much  used  in 

Egrpt.    213;    numerous,  however,   in     Solomon's 

time.  21  1 

Ceremonies,  some  borrowed  from  the  Jewish  church 


IXDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.         373 

Ccelosyria  described,  27R 

Chazrin.  who 

Children  of  this  world — of  darkness — light,  &c., 
whence  the  expression?,  89 ;  increase  of  them  de- 
sired by  the  Israelites,  109  ;  how  numerous  in  some 
families,  111. 

Chimneys  among  the  ancients  little  known,  86. 

Chlamys  of  the  Greeks,  what,  75,  79. 

Christians  eat  too  often,  9-2. 

Church,  whenco  the  word,  202. 

Cicero,  what  he  menus  by  Jewish  gold,  -I  I 

Circumcision,  practised  by  many  nations  beside  Jews, 
9^;  performed  in  private  booses  without  the  mi- 
nistry of  priests,  109;  the  seal  of  the  covenant,  263. 

Cities  in  Judea,  the  habitation  of  labourers,  and  very 
numerous,  201 ;     their    gates  th< 
205;  at  first  buili  by  wicked  ni^n.  31. 

Clonks,  a  sort  of  military  <; 

Clothes  of  the  anHrnts  Injudiciously  represented 
by  most  painter-,  7t'>.  78:  fashions  of  them  little 
changed  in  the  east,  77;  ill  consequences  of  their 
change,  7H ;  of  white  colour  most  in  use  among  the 
Israelites,  Greeks,  and  Romans,  80  ;  made  generally 
amons:  them  all  very  plain,  80;  of  the  women  more 
sumptuous,  82. 

Concubines,  though  generally  slaves,  yet  to  keep 
them  not  reckoned  disreputable,  113;  ill  conse- 
quences from  the  use  of  them,  113,  114. 

Confession  of  faith,  333,  334. 

Corban,  what,  309. 

Council  of  seventy-two  and  the  high  priest  at  Jeru- 
salem, and  of  twmty-three  in  the  smaller  cities, 
their  power,  203  ;  kept  their  court  at  the  gate  of  the 
city,  204 ;  continued  while  the  Jews  were  subject  to 
the  Persians,  229  ;  and  to  the  Romans,  245. 

Country  people,  the  cause  of  their  misery,  45. 

Courts  of  judicature  among  the  Romans  at  the  forum, 
of  the  Israelites  at  the  city  gates,  in  feudal  times  at 
•the  courts  of  lords'  castles,  204,  205. 

Craftsmen,  valley  of,  74. 

Crusades  laid  waste  the  Holy  Land,  56. 

Cubit,  two  sorts  mentioned  in  Scripture,  162. 

Cynara,  what,  126. 


374       INDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Day,   how   divided  by   the   Hebrews,   Greeks,   and 

Romans,  281. 
David,  his  riches,  217. 
Dancing  in  use  amona;  the  Israelites,  12G. 
Daughters  of  the  patriarchs  bred  to  hard  labour,  32. 
Death  of  the  patriarchs,  how  described  in  Scripture,  35. 
Decapolis,  described,  275. 
Deism  of  a  Jewish  rabbi,  3G0. 
Diet  of  the  ancient  Israelites,  88,  80. 
Divorce,  ill  consequences  of  it,  114;  when  first  heard 

of  at  Rome,  114. 
Dress  of  the  Hebrews,  75,  70  ;  of  the  English,  22. 

Eastern  fashions  change  little,  79;  their  compliments 

more  like  ours  than  those  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans 

are,  149;  play  at  no  games  of  hazard,  153. 
Edom,  what  it  signifies,  273. 
Egypt,   physic  supposed  to  have  been  invented  there, 

:'..'>:  what    food  the  Egyptians  abstained  from,  90; 

Solon,   Pythagoras,  and   Plato  studied  there,  230; 

becoming  an  addition  to  the  Roman  power  hastened 

the  ruin  of  the  Jewish,  341. 
Elders  of  Israel,  tin'  Jewish  sanhedrim,  201,202;  the 

seat  of  the  elders,  what  meant  by  it,  245;  number 

of,  9dB 
Elijah,  meaning  of  the  name,  40. 
Embalming   practised  by   the   Israelites  as   well  as 

Egyptians,  158. 
Eponymi,  what,  :'>'.' 
Ephod  described,  325 
Equinox,  what.  989-393. 
Essenes,  their  manner  of  life,  250. 
Ethnarehs,  what  meant  by  them,  245. 
Eumcus  describedby  Homer  making  his  own  shoes,  72. 
Eannchs,  servants  about  the  king's  person,  without 

denoting  personal  imperfection,  210. 
Evenings,  two,  what,  980 

Fashions,  see  Clothe*. 

Fathers  amona  the  Israelites  had  power  of  life  and 
death  over  their  children,  198;  but  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  magistrate,  198  ;  the  same  law  practised 
at  Athens.  !«.»- 


INDEX — MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.         375 

Fasts  proclaimed  by  sound  of  trumpet,  as  well  as 
feasts,  172 ;  how  many  stated  ones,  172 ;  Moham- 
medan, 176. 

Feasts,  religious,  the  number  of  them  among  the 
Israelites,  171,  192;  were  times  of  general  joy,  170. 

Feet,  custom  of  washing  them  at  visits,  81 ;  to  water 
and  to  cover  the  feet,  what  meant  by  it,  150. 

Fireplaces,  86. 

Fir>t  fruits,  310. 

Fish,  scarce  eaten  in  the  most  ancient  times  either  by 
Israelites  or  Grecians,  90. 

Fleury,  Abbe',  his  life,  7 

Forces,  see  Militia. 

Fruits  brought  into  Europe  from  Asia  and  Africa 
have  degenerated,  56. 

Fruitfulness  of  the  promised  land,  55-57. 

Funerals  among  the  Hebrews,  157-159. 

Gadara  described,  276. 

Galilees,  two  of  them,  374. 

Galileans  were  the  first  who  received  the  gospel,  274. 

Galileo  imprisoned  for  asserting  the  true  system  of  the 
world,  190,  note. 

Games  of  hazard  unknown  to  the  Israelites,  and 
forbidden  by  the  Arabians  to  this  day,  153. 

Gate  of  the  city,  courts  of  judicature  held  there,  204. 

Genealogies  of  Matthew  and  Luke,  how  reconciled, 
112. 

Genesareth,  lake  of,  277. 

Germans  introduced  on  this  side  of  the  Rhine  the  love 
of  hunting,  49  ;  and  will  always  retain  it,  246. 

Gittith,  what,  137. 

Globe  explained,  289. 

Government  of  the  Israelites,  what  the  form  of  it, 
194,  &c. ;  of  the  patriarchs,  lasted  nine  hundred 
years,  38. 

Gout,  King  Asa  blamed  for  trusting  in  physicians  to 
cure  it,  97. 

Greek  proper  names  explained,  41. 

Greeks,  ancient,  employed  in  breeding  cattle,  32; 
seem  to  have  been  great  eaters,  34  ;  retained  a  great 
opinion  of  husbandry  in  the  height  of  their  polite- 
ness, 47;  joined  manufactures  and  trade  to  it,  69; 


376         1JTDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

their  wisdom  and  religion,  183-185  ;  their  worship, 

186,  187;  improved  in  sciences  not  till  the  time  of 

Alexander,  18'J. 
Greek  tongue  learned   by  the  Jews,   especially  of 

Alexandria,  255. 
Greek  and  Gentile,  whence  the  name,  231. 
Gregorian  Style,  201. 

Habits  of  the  priests,  319:  habits  of  the  hi£*h  priest. 

323-  r 

Hacamim,  or  Chocamim,  who,  327. 
Handmaids,  who  they  were,  36. 
Hazanim,  who,  346. 
Hebrew,  the  genius  of  the  language,  117,  118;  lost  by 

the  Jews  in  their  captivity,  22"). 
Hebrews  by  birth.  260. 
Hecataeus,  a  fragment  of  his  concerning  the  extent  of 

Palestine  explained,   i  I 
Heiresses,  obliged  to  marry  within  their  own  tribe  and 

family.    100. 

Hellenists,  who  meant  by  them  in  Scripture,  234. 

Herod's  reign,  the  last  period  in  which  the  Jews  were 
considerable,  343;  bis tetrarchy,  S 

Hesiod  wrote  B  | tn  upon  husbandry,  47;  his  man- 
ner of  writing,  188. 

1  [igaion,  what,  K*!>. 

High   priest,  l>     ■  jf, 

Hindoos,  their  purifications,  101. 

Historians,  the  priests  only  such  anciently,  130;  ex- 
cellence of  the  Jewish,  131. 

Holocaust,  what,  904. 

Holy  Land,  names  and  divisions  of,  267;  why  called 
Palestine,  967 

Horn*  38,  17;  shows  his  heroes  were 

great  eaters,  *>i 

I  1      -•■      i       *  ,/nilri/. 

Honses,  and  household  furniture,  in  the  east,  what, 

Hunting  in  more  credit  among  the  moderns  than  the 
ancients;  a  barbarous  employment,  49;  not  fal- 
lowed much  by  the  Israelites,  153. 

Husbandry,  the  employment  of  the  patriarchs,  32; 
and  of  the  Israelites  afterward,  44-54  ;  and  of  other 


INDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.         377 

ancient  nations,  54;  brought  into  disesteem  by  the 
tyranny  of  the  northern  nations,  51 ;  more  useful 
than  what  is  called  learning,  138;  parables  in  the 
gospel  borrowed  from  that  emplo)',  217. 

Idolatry,  the  ri^e  of  it,  189;  the  Israelites  tempted  to 
it  by  their  neighbours,  191.  Idols,  whence  called 
vanity  and  abomination,  236. 

Idumea,  described,  272. 

Inspiration,  how  far  it  attended  the  sacred  writers, 
and  in  what  sense  to  be  understood,  132. 

Instruments  of  music  among:  the  Hebrews,  account  of, 
131 ;  Hebrew  and  Chaldcc  names  of  these,  139. 

Israelites,  whence  their  name,  38;  their  country,  see 
Palestine;  divided  into  twelve  tribes,  39;  were 
really  brethren,  39;  did  not  intermarry  with  other 
nations,  10;  titles  anions:  them,  what,  10;  employ- 
ments, 44,  &c.  ;  hindered  from  alienating  their 
property.  68;  paid  no  rents  but  the  tenths  and  first 
fruits,  66;  prohibited  from  castrating  their  cattle, 
66;  used  asses  instead  of  horses,  67  ;  had  but  few 
slaves,  and  little  money.  67,  68  ;  not  mueh  addicted 
to  trade,  68;  wanted  artificers  for  arms  and  even 
instruments  of  husbandry,  71 ;  no  bakers  among 
them,  71  ;  wore  their  beards  Ion?,  81  ;  used  origi- 
nally lo  eat  sitting,  88;  afterward  lying,  88;  had  at 
first  no  physicians.  96;  how  far  avoided  strangers, 
97,9-3;  did  not  study  lancruas^s,  117;  writing  not 
common  amnn?  them,  11H;  had  no  public  schools, 
127;  their  government  founded  on  aristocracy, 
194;  fall  into  idolatry,  and  apply  to  strangers 
for  succours,  both  which  brought  on  their  ruin, 
222.     See  Jews. 

Italy,  varied  at  different  periods,  24. 

Jasher,  book  of,  119. 

Jews,  a  name  applied  to  the  kingdom  of  Judah 
not  till  after  the  captivity  of  the  ten  tribes,  223 ; 
less  corruption  in  that  kingdom  than  in  that  of 
Israel,  222 ;  what  numbers  returned  from  their 
captivity,  226;  how  long  before  they  rebuilt  their 
city  and  temple,  229 ;  when  they  recovered  them- 
selves, 229  ;  enjoyed  their  own  laws,  230 ;  commu- 


378        INDEX — MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

nicated  their  doctrines  to  the  Grecians,  230  ;  privi- 
leges granted  them  by  several  kings,  232 ;  when 
they  learned  the  Greek  tongue,  233 ;  some  of  them 
writers  in  it,  234;  dispersed  in  Asia  and  Europe, 
234 ;  whence  falsely  reckoned  an  ignorant  people, 
236" ;  under  what  kings  persecuted,  239 ;  take  up 
arms  against  the  Syrian  kings,  240;  become  consi- 
derable under  the  Maccabees  for  fourscore  years, 
240,  341  j  harassed  by  different  nations,  and  at  last 
subject  to  the  Romans,  243 ;  became  tax-gatherers, 
&c,  contrary  to  their  original  institution,  247; 
many  of  them  physicians,  948;  would  not  pro- 
nounce the  names  of  false  gods,  120:  think  them- 
.-elves  obliged  to  kill  the  Gentiles  whenever  they 
ran.  961,  33(5. 

Jewish  prohibitions,  utility  of,  21;  confession  of 
faith,  533-335:  liturgy,  3oU 

.7->e].  meaning  of  the  name,  40. 

Jonath  Klein  Rechokim,  I! 

Jordan,  whence  iis  .name.  2G8. 

Joseph,  remarks  on  hi--  ;ilt.  .'><> 

Jubilee,  the  word  does  uol  signify  a  ram':;  horn,  169. 

Judaism  could  not  be  embraced  by  eunuchs,  961. 

Judge*  governed  those  tribes  only  who  chose  them, 
•Jir.:  judges  in  courts  of  judicature,  901. 

Justice,  administration  o£,  2 

KiiiLr.  desired  by  the  Israelites  as  preferable  to  their 
condition  under  judges,  916:  his  standing  forces, 
916;  had  absolute  power  of  life  and  death,  and 
of  levying  tribute  210;  in  what  respect  limited, 
217;  liis  splendour  and  richer,  217. 

Kingdoms,  at  fust  small,  99. 

Einoor,  what.  1  IS 

Kith  res,  what,  110. 

Lameeh.  the  first  polygamist  113. 

Lamps,  anciently  used  instead  of  candles,  84  ;  descrip- 
tion of  a  curious  one,  84. 

Languages,  not  studied  bv  the  Hebrews  or  ancient 
Greeks.  117. 

Law.  always  read  in  Hebrew,  328. 

Leprosy,  which  sort  meant  in  Scripture,  96. 


INDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.  379 

Levi,  whole  tribe  of,  dedicated  to  God,  43. 

Levites,  sophetim  or  judges ;  and  inferior  officers  of 

justice,  called  solemn,  chosen  out  of  them,  902. 
Levites,  estates,  functions,  and  number,  312-316. 
L'vitical  cities,  271 . 
Liturgy,  Jewish,  360. 
Lordships,  not  above  seven  hundred  years  old,  43. 

Maccabees  revived  the  Jewish  state,  210. 

Mahalath,  what,  13S. 

Mohammedans  scrupulously  nice  about  some  inde- 
cencies, 151 ;  forbidden  games  of  hazard,  153. 

Maimonides  describes  a  proselyte,  261 ;  shows  what 
was  required  in  such,  262-267 ;  describes  the 
magnificence  of  the  temple,  316 ;  opinion  concern- 
ing orignal  sin,  335. 

Manners  of  nations  alter  by  time  and  place,  22. 

Marriage  with  strangers  allowed  to  the  Jews,  except 
of  heiresses,  100;  marriage  feasts,  how  long  they 
lasted,  107;  transacted  between  the  relations  and 
friends,  without  priests  or  sacrifices,  108 ;  pro- 
moted among  the  ancients,  100;  necessary  for  the 
Jewish  priests,  168. 

Martyrs,  who  the  first,  239. 

Maschil,  what,  139. 

Meats  clean  and  unclean  among  other  nations  as  well 
as  the  Jews,  90;  physical  and  moral  reasons 
for  such  distinction,  91. 

Mehil,  what,  324. 

Messiah,  types  of  his  reign  described  in  terms  by 
which  the  prophets  foretel  the  happiness  of  the 
Jews,  230. 

Michtam,  what,  138. 

Militia,  all  persons  of  such  an  age  made  part  of  it  in 
Judea  and  at  Rome,  211;  of  what  number  it  con- 
sisted under  different  kings  of  Israel,  216. 

Mincha,  what,  302. 

Ministers  of  the  temple,  312. 

Mitres,  82. 

Mohammedans,  their  purifications,  104 ;  their  fasts, 
176. 

Mohel,  who,  104. 

Money,  little  among  the  Israelites,  30,  C7. 


380         INDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Moon,  regulated  the  Jewish  months,  284 ;  new,  285. 

Month,  periodical,  287;  synodical,  287.  Months, 
their  names,  288. 

Month  among  the  Israelites  computed  from  the 
moon's  appearance,  285 ;  reason  of  this,  285. 

Mountains  of  Judea,  269. 

Mourning  among  the  Israelites  for  misfortunes,  as 
well  as  the  death  of  relations,  154  ;  the  manner  of  it 
among  them  and  other  nations,  156. 

Music  among  the  Hebrews  and  other  nations  ex- 
quisite, 124 ;  more  affecting  than  ours,  125  ;  in  what 
sense  promoted  prophesying,  125.  Musicians,  four 
thousand  under  David.  125.     Instruments  of,  134 

Muthlabben,  what,  137. 

Mysteries,  heathen,  full  of  debaucheries,  134,  135. 

Nabla,  what,  126;  particularly  described,  141. 

Naboth,  whence  his  resolution  not  to  sell  the  inherit- 
ance of  his  fathers,  66. 

Names  of  the  patriarchs,  historical,  28;  of  the  Israel- 
ites, religious,  40 ;  of  false  gods,  not  mentioned  by 
them,  190;  sometimes  the  father's,  sometimes  the 
mother's  name,  continued  to  the  children,  42; 
sometimes  a  surname  added,  42;  how  distinguished 
among  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  43. 

Names  of  the  Holy  Land,  267. 

Nations,  bow  some  vary  in  their  manners  and  customs, 
how  others  agree,  22. 

Nazarites,  vow,  in  what  it  consisted,  174;  what  they 
were,  312,  329. 

Neginoth  and  Nehiloth,  what,  137. 

Noah,  precepts  of,  261. 

Nuchthemeron,  what,  280. 

Nurses,  three  only  mentioned  in  Scripture.  113. 

Oblations,  different  kinds,  308-310. 

Ode,  see  Poetry. 

Odoriferous  plants  laid  up  with  wearing  apparel,  30. 

Offerings,  numerous  in  the  Jewish  temple,  173 ;  dif- 
ferent kinds,  307-310. 

Ofiicers,  but  four  sorts  in  Joshua's  time,  209 ;  more 
in  David's  209 ;  their  Hebrew  names  explained, 
209. 


INDEX MANNERS    OF   THE    ISRAELITES.         381 

Officers  of  the  temple,  316;  of  war,  31G  ;  of  the  syna- 
gogue, 326. 

Oil  used  anciently  instead  of  candles,  84  ;  their  paste 
kneaded  with  it,  90. 

Old  men,  their  authority,  199. 
,  Olympiads,  what,  284. 

Original  sin,  Jewish  opinion  of,  335. 

Painters  injudiciously  represent  the  habits  of  the  an- 
cients, 76 ;  and  a  priest  present  a*  the  ceremony  of 
circumcision,  109 ;  by  guess  only  making  David 
playing  on  a  harp,  126. 

Palestine,  whence  its  name,  267 ;  the  advantages  of 
its  situation,  55  ;  whence  its  present  desolation,  56  ; 
its  fertility  formerly,  56 ;  the  number  of  its  inha- 
bitants, 57 ;  its  contents  of  acres,  and  how  many 
men  it  was  able  to  maintain,  59;  its  contents  in 
degrees,  61 ;  the  people  somewhat  supported  by 
tributaries,  61. 

Pallium,  what,  75. 

Parnasim,  who,  328. 

Pastoral  life  more  perfect  than  that  of  husbandry,  32  ; 
followed  by  people  of  condition  among  the  Greeks 
and  other  nations,  32 ;  see  Husbandry . 

Pastorals,  their  origin,  32. 

Patriarchs,  explanation  of  the  name,  25 ;  the  advantage 
of  their  longevity,  25;  their  very  names  historical, 
28;  a  sort  of  tings,  32;  their  riches  chiefly  in 
cattle,  29 ;  but  without  horses  or  hogs,  30 ;  had 
slaves,  money,  and  perfumes,  30 ;  lived  chiefly 
in  tents,  31  ;  their  lives  laborious,  32;  their  meals 
plain,  and  were  great  eaters,  35;  enjoyed  good 
health,  and  attained  to  a  great  age,  35 ;  their  mo- 
deration with  regard  to  wives,  35. 

Peace  offerings,  307. 

Perfumes  used  by  the  Israelites  before  musk  and  am- 
bergris were  found  out,  152 ;  used  sometimes  at 
their  funerals,  158. 

Perea  described,  275. 

Pharisees,  their  principles,  249  ;  gave  alms  in  public, 
252. 

Phoenicians,  or  Canaanites,  whence  addicted  to  trade, 
69. 


382         INDEX — MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

Phylacteries,  what  they   were,  note,    251  ;    curious 

account  of  one,  252. 
Physicians,  first  in  Egvpt,  35;    originally  surgeons, 

$6. 
Plato  borrowed  probably  from  the  writings  of  Moses, 

230. 
Plato's  commonwealth    realized  among   the  ancient 

1  [ebrews,  1<>. 
Plural,  when   nrst  used  in  speaking  to  one  person, 

150. 
Poem-,  the  most  ancient  roei  ies  of  it,  1-1 ;  dramatic 

not  used  among  the  Hebrew*,  121;  curious  speci- 
mens <>i  it.  i  i.v  i 
Polygamy,  ill"  reason  of  it,  119;  reasons  why  tole- 

r.u.-.i.  i  L3. 
Population  i><  ancienl  nations,  curious  facts  concern- 

III1.'.    ('.•-'.    StC 

i       irhence  Jemsalem  compared  to  it,  166. 

i '     sbyter,  whence,  80S. 

Prie  '  ecluded  from  civil  offices,  or  bearing 

arms,  169,  210;  among  the  Israelites  and  Egyptians 
the  only  «  liters  "I  history,  130  .  nol  necessary  at  the 
tnony  <>t  circumcision,  UW ;  forbidden  i<>  !>'•  pre- 
v<  iii  ;n  funerals,  159;  their  court  in  the  temple,  1<»1 , 
what  part  they  bore  in  the  sacrifices,  165;  went 
barefoot  into  the  temple,  168,  318;  their  order, 
election,   manner  of  life,   l.r  lions,  habits, 

obliged  I"  many.  DUl  within  their  <>\\n 
tiil>      i  forbidden  from  wearing  woollen, 

168;  their  support,  168;  high  priest>  from  tin1  Lime 
■  i  Herod,  as  many  as  the  Kings  |  843;  how 

consecrated 

Priesthood  (high)  its  succession,  323;  pa  ses  from 
the  family  of  Aaron  to  that  of  Judas  Maccabeus, 

Prophets,  when  most  numerous    178;   lived  in  - 
tee,    119;  oi  tow  circumstances,  179:  wore  sack- 
cloth, 179;  often  married  men,  17!';  whence  David, 
Samuel,  and  Daniel,  not  reckoned  prophets,   180; 

their  office,  1*0:  many  counterfeited  the  demeanour 
of  prophets,   181;     i  ;     had   likewise   their 

prophets.  181 ;  called  Sccrs,  331. 
Prophesying,,  how  promoted  by  music.  125. 


INDEX MANNER*    DF    THE    ISRAELITES.         383 

Proselytes,  of  two  sorts,  99.  261;  one  hundred  and 
fifty-three  thousand  of  them  in  Judea  in  Solomon's 
time,  99;  carefully  distinguished  from  the  true 
Israelites,  227. 

I  lyte  of  habitation.  2*31  ;  of  justice,   262;  cere- 

monies on  admitting  one,  263. 

Publicans,  who,  217 

Pulse,  the  most  common  food  of  the  ancients,  and 
which  gave  names  to  the  best  families  among  the 
Romans,  89. 

Purifications  prescribed,  for  what  reason,  93,  94. 

dueen  of  Sheba,  her  hard  questions  or  enigmas.  199 

Rain,  morning  and  evening,  means  spring  and  autumn 

in  Scripture 
Rashim,  who,  209 

I.'   chabites,  who,  171,  312;  their  institutions.  31 
Riddles  among  the  ancients,  l 
Kising  early,  what  it  denotes  in  Scripture,  88. 
Rivers  of  Judea,  2 
Romans,  their  esteem  for  husbandry,  47,  128 ;  their 

genius,  235;  dignities,  278. 

Sabbath,  its  meaning,  280;  when  it  began,  280; 
signifies  sometimes,!  whole  week,  283. 

Sabbatical  years,  363  ;  no  debts  exacted  in  them,  65; 
slaves  then  recovered  their  liberty,  196. 

Sacrifices,  ordinarily  presented  and  slain  bv  the  peo- 
ple at  the  altar,  1(11  ;  by  the  priests  at  the  public 
sacrifices  for  all  the  people,  165  ;  continual  sacrifice 
of  four  lambs  daily,  165;  different  kinds,  294,  304, 
307  ;  described  by  Eusebius,  295. 

Sacrificing,  what  it  implies,  297,  298;  the  end  of  all 
religion,  298;  time  of,  304. 

Sadducees,  their  tenets,  249. 

Sagan,  high  priest's  deputy.  323. 

Samaria,  described,  273. 

Samaritan  letters  the  ancient  Hebrew,  113,  225; 
Samaritan  temple  destroyed,  241. 

Samaritans,  their  origin,  341;  monstrous  idolatry, 
343 ;  build  a  temple  on  Mount  Gerizim,  A.  M. 
3595,  and  never  afterward  addicted  toidolatry,  343 ; 


384        INDEX — MANNERS   OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

modern    in   Jiulea    and  Egypt,  346 ;    their    high 

Priest's  confession  of  faith,  347;  deceived  by  Mr. 
iuntington,  351;  their  letter  to  their  supposed 
brethren  in  England,  351 ;  deliver  their  pentateuch 
10  Mr.  Huntington,  358;  this  copy  described,  358. 

Sanhedrim,  or  council  of  seventy-two,  215  ;  name  ex- 
plained, 245.     See  Council. 

Sceptre  not  departing  from  Judah,  what  meant  by  it, 
194,  sec  note. 

Schools  for  study  little  in  use  among  the  Hebrews, 
127  ;  whence  the  name,  127. 

Scriptures,  why  read  to  so  little  purpose,  20;  in  their 
style  resemble  the  ancient  Greek  writers,  132;  the 
Greek  of  them  not  elegant,  255. 

Septuagint,  account  of,  232. 

Sense  and  sound,  <  minus  combinations  of  in  the  He- 
brew poetry,  1 10- 148. 

Seers,  who,  331. 

Sheinoneh  Esreh,  or  eighteen  prayers  of  the  ancient 
Jews,  3(52. 

Sheminith.  what,  137. 

Shields.  Solomons  three  hundred,  value  of,  330. 

Shiggaion,  what,  137. 

Shoshanim,  what,  138. 

Silk  not  known  to  the  ancients,  nor  till  late  on  this 
side  the  Indies,  79. 

Sin  offering,  305. 

Sirini,  what,  210. 

Sitting  at  meals  used  by  the  ancient  Israelites  and 
Greeks,  88  ;  ehanged  to  lying  from  the  reign  of  the 
Persians,  88. 

Slaves  anciently  lived  happier  than  our  country  peo- 
ple, 51;  few  among  the  Israelites,  07;  in  what 
cases  they  became  so  to  their  brethren,  190;  re- 
covered their  freedom  in  the  sabbatical  and  jubilee 
years,  196;  the  greatest  princes  reduced  to  slavery 
by  eonquest,  221. 

Solomon,  his  immense  riches,  218;  revenues,  218, 
341  ;  what  his  example  teaches,  220,  221. 

Songs  more  ancient  than  letters,  123. 

Sopherim,  the  learned  men  or  scribes  so  called,  118. 

Sophetim,  judges,  909. 

Soterim,  inferior  officers  of  justice,  202,  209. 


INDEX MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES.         385 

Spain  had  once  the  same  customs  with  Africa,  now 
more  resembles  Germany,  23. 

Stipulation,  what  meant  by  it,  206. 

Slola,  what,  75.  ^ 

Stones  of  the  temple,  remarkable  ones,  8/;  burden- 
some, what,  115. 

Strange  women,  who  meant  by  them  in  Scripture, 

192 

Strangers,  why  avoided  by  the  Israelites,  and  by  other 

nations,  97.  . 

Surnames  of  Roman  families,  89  ;  Grecian  explained, 

43. 

Swine's  flesh  abstained  from  by  Egyptians  as  well  as 

Jews,  91.  . 

Synagogues  in  each  city,  who  appointed  to  speak  in 

them,  129. 

Talent,  value  of,  338  ;  how  to  reduce  it  into  English 
money,  338. 

Tapestry  rarely  used  in  the  east,  85. 

Targets,  Solomon's  two  hundred,  value  of,  339. 
;  imista,  who,  328. 

Temple,  why  only  one,  162;  no  trees  about  it,  162; 

entered    Into  by  the  priests  alone,  103 ;  the  riches 

prepared  for  it  by  David,  218 ;  when  rebuilt,  229  ;  ad- 

)  lired  by  foreigners  for  its  magnificence,  234  ;  dues 

tenths  and  first  fruits  sent  from  distant  parts  in 

money,  244. 
Temple    its  magnificence  described  by  Maimonides, 

3l7- 
Tents,  the  most  ancient  habitations,  31. 

Tenths,  311. 

Tephillin,  what,  251. 

Thee  and  thou  the  language  of  antiquity,  149. 

Thigh,  what  meant  by  it  in  Scripture,  150. 

Tithes,  311. 

Time,  how  measured  among  the  Hebrews,  2/9. 

Titles,  40. 

Totaphot,  what,  251. 
Trades  and  arts,  G9-74. 
Traditions,  Jewish,  very  frivolous,  253. 
Tribes    into  how  many  the  Israelites  and  other  na- 
tions' were  divided.  39 ;  tribe  of  Levi,  what  their 
25 


oSG         INDEX — MANNERS    OF    THE    ISRAELITES. 

inheritance,  43;  of  Judah  and  Ephraim,  how 
distinguished,  43;  what  tribes  included  in  the 
kingdom  of  Judah,  223;  preserved  distinct  during 
their  captivity  and  afterward,  227;  Roman  and 
Athenian  tribes.  42. 

Tribute,  how  much  paid  by  Palestine,  and  how  much 
by  Babylon  to  Darius,  229 ;  how  much  extorted 
from  the  Jews  bv  tli£  Romans,  242. 

Tsitsith,  what,  251. 

Tunic,  what,  75. 

Twelve  tribes  divided  into  their  families,  258,  259. 

Urim  and  Thummim,  what,  326. 

Virginity  anciently  not  reckoned  a  virtue,  111. 
Vows,  173;  in  what  they  chiefly  consisted,  173-  of  the 
Nazal  it<<.  what,  174;  see  308. 

Wars,  210. 

Week.  383.     Week  of  days,  2*3. 

Women,  their  employment  among  the  ancients,  105; 

often    door-keepers    among    the    Israelites,    106; 

inherited  only  in  default  of  male  i^-sue,  110. 
Worship   among  the  Jews   attended  with  sensible 

mirth  mixed  with  spiritual,  171. 
Writing  probably  invented  before  the  deluge,  27;  not 

mentioned  before  the  time  ol  26;  contracts 

in    writing    not   mentioned  till   a   little  before  the 
i  action  of  Jerusalem,  206 ;  obtained  late  among 

the  Etonians, 

Year.  Jewish,  of  how  many  days,  170;  how  computed, 
288;  civil,  388;  ecclesiastical,  288;  exact  regulation 
of,  S 

Years,  four  sorts  among  the  Jews,  293. 

Zebachim,  what,  302. 
Zereth,  what,  325. 
Zikonim,  who,  209. 


Date  Due 

. 

1    Gri       B 

o 

SK7     ^ 

>96      F618M 


23762 


University  Lib 


